Implementing the JRCALC Guidelines

Last month saw the publication of the long overdue and eagerly anticipated updated version of the Joint Royal Colleges Ambulance Liaison Committee (JRCALC) Guidelines for use by UK Ambulance Services (JRCALC, 2013), the first major re-write since 2006. Seven years is a long time in terms of clinical care, so it is not surprising that the new guidelines reflect some significant changes and it may take a while for all of these changes to be assimilated and introduced into clinical practice. The main changes have been collated and presented on the Association of Ambulance Chief Executives (AACE) website (AACE, 2013) and are accessible for all to read. The publication of the guidelines is just the first part of what could be a protracted implementation programme where employers decide whether or not they are going to make available all of the drugs that now appear in the guidelines, and whether or not they will embrace all of the recommended changes to practice or adopt them with some local variation such as different timing, dose, sequence or removal of elements of the guideline.