Research

Length of professional education of paramedics and nurses at community colleges in the Northeast United States

Paramedics have provided advanced pre-hospital emergency medical care in the US since the early 1970s (National Highway Safety Traffic Administration (NHTSA), 2007; Edgerly, 2013). According to the...

Airway management in UK ambulance services: results of the National Ambulance Service Airway Management Audit

An internet-based survey entitled the National Ambulance Service Airway Management Audit was created using the Bristol University Online Survey Tool (University of Bristol; www.survey.bris.ac.uk). The...

A critical analysis and appraisal of the management of croup in the UK out-of-hospital environment

Croup is a common respiratory infection with an incidence of around 3% of the paediatric population per year, most commonly affecting children between 6–36 months and more commonly males than females...

Should the Kendrick Extrication Device have a place in pre-hospital care?

Essentially the KED is a flexible mini back board that, when in position on the casualty, extends from their lower back to above their head. It also extends laterally to encompass the flanks and head,...

Challenges of postpartum haemorrhage: a case study in the aeromedical retrieval environment

Postpartum haemorrhage (PPH) is the main cause of nearly 25% of maternal deaths worldwide (World Health Organization, 2012). The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG) categorise PPH...

Spotlight on Research

Although over recent years there has been an increased volume of research relating to out-of-hospital emergency and unscheduled care, Lerner et al (2015) suggest the evidence base remains limited,...

Independent prescribing: a journey to provide the best possible care

The Review of Prescribing, Supply and Administration of Medicines (Department of Health (DH), 1999), chaired by Dr June Crown, proposed that prescribing rights should be extended to a range of health...

Paramedic prescribing: a potion for success or a bitter pill to swallow?

Paramedics traditionally operate in high-risk and often unpredictable environments, dealing with a range of illnesses and injuries from the critically ill, to those patients with low acuity, yet often...

Can pre-hospital recognition and intervention improve outcome for patients with severe sepsis?

A comprehensive literature review was completed to evaluate the available evidence, undertaken in late 2013.

Pre-hospital technology research: reflecting on a collaborative project between ambulance service and academia

The MIME technology consisted of two key components: i) lightweight medical sensors that were simple to apply and operate (see Figure 1), and ii) novel software that presented these data very simply,...

Spotlight on Research

Over the years there has been growing interest in the use of ultrasound as a diagnostic tool to enhance paramedic practice when managing patients with a variety of clinical presentations..

Excelerate Technology: responding to the evolving communications needs of the emergency care sector

As the communications requirements of the emergency care sector evolve, we continue our commitment to our customers by investing heavily in new ways to support paramedics in the field, through the use...