EMS One-Stop

This episode of EMS One-Stop with Rob Lawrence is brought to you by Lexipol, the experts in policy, training, wellness support and grants assistance for first responders and government leaders. To learn more, visit lexipol.com. This edition of EMS One-Stop looks at diversity, equity and inclusion in U.S. EMS. This episode takes a deep dive into two academic research papers recently published by members of NAEMSP’s Diversity Equity and Inclusion Committee who focus on the delivery of care and how that care may differ based on a patient’s ethnicity and race. Host Rob Lawrence welcomes: Anjni Joiner, assistant professor of emergency medicine at Duke University School of Medicine, and medical director for Durham County EMS Ameera Haamid, assistant professor of emergency medicine at the University of Chicago and associate medical director for Chicago South EMS Andra Farcas, emergency physician at the University of Colorado - Anschutz Medical Campus Jordan Rudman, emergency medicine resident at the Harvard Emergency Medical Residency at the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center One of the two research papers discussed is now published: Rudman JS, Farcas A, Salazar GA, et al. (2022) Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in the United States Emergency Medical Services Workforce: A Scoping Review, Prehospital Emergency Care The companion research paper on disparities in care has been peer reviewed and accepted for publication.

This episode of EMS One-Stop with Rob Lawrence is brought to you by Lexipol, the experts in policy, training, wellness support and grants assistance for first responders and government leaders. To learn more, visit lexipol.com. Faroukh M. Mehkri is an assistant professor of emergency medicine at the University of Texas SW Medical Center as well as a SWAT physician with the Dallas Police Department. He recently presented a session at the International Association of Police Chiefs Conference in Dallas, “Management of the acutely agitated behavioral health emergency: A patrol nightmare.” In this edition of EMS One-Stop, Host Rob Lawrence chats with Dr. Mehkri about his lecture and his 15-month deep dive into behavioral health emergency patients, their outcomes, the situations surrounding the calls, and both police and EMS interventions. Dr. Mehkri delivers key takeaways for both a police and EMS audience: Words matter, in your documentation and on your body camera Physical restraint kills – so we must minimize this activity Chemical sedation for medication management saves. “Inviting” the medic to “just give them something” is a slippery slope Monitor, monitor, monitor The person is the patient! Read more about treating behavioral emergencies Expert tips for EMS handling of behavioral emergencies Reel Emergency Vodcast: Patient with delirium and agitated behavior 5 keys for responding to excited delirium patients The fourth 911 option: Mental health services Quick Take: 988 and the future of crisis response

This episode of EMS One-Stop with Rob Lawrence is brought to you by Lexipol, the experts in policy, training, wellness support and grants assistance for first responders and government leaders. To learn more, visit lexipol.com. In this edition of EMS One-Stop, Host Rob Lawrence welcomes Dr. Alex Isakov, executive director of Emory’s Office of Critical Event Preparedness and Response (CEPAR) and professor of emergency medicine at Emory University School of Medicine. Dr. Isakov also leads the National Emerging Special Pathogens Training and Education Center (NETEC) EMS workgroup developing education and resources to improve EMS and community disaster resilience. Rob and Dr. Isakov discuss the current Ugandan Ebola outbreak and the implications and risk of spread to the U.S. On September 20, 2022, Uganda announced that it had an outbreak of Ebola virus with the Sudan strain, which has now spread amongst five of its administrative districts. The case and death count, as of October 12, 2022, was 74 total cases (54 confirmed) and 39 deaths (19 confirmed). As a result, the U.S. has issued a Health Advisory Network (HAN) Travel Alert Level 2 and HAN Health Advisory for healthcare workers to be aware of the Ebola outbreak in Uganda, monitor for symptoms consistent with Ebola, and utilize best practices if there are any signs that someone might be experiencing an illness consistent with it. The tactics to identify, isolate, and inform are discussed as well as reminder about PPE requirements. Rob and Dr. Isakov also conduct an additional roundup on the current situation on COVID and Monkeypox. Additional EMS resources CDC: Guidance for Emergency Medical Services and 911 communication centers CDC: Guidance for developing a plan for interfacility transport of persons under investigation or confirmed to have Ebola virus disease in the United States NETEC: EMS Infectious Disease Playbook NETEC: Considerations for safe EMS transport of patients infected with Ebola virus NETEC: Transport and management of patients with confirmed or suspected Ebola virus disease NETEC: Ebola - Knowledge resources for responders NETEC: Regional Transport Ebola Tabletop Exercise Template

This episode of EMS One-Stop With Rob Lawrence is brought to you by Lexipol, the experts in policy, training, wellness support and grants assistance for first responders and government leaders. To learn more, visit lexipol.com. In this edition of EMS One-Stop, Rob Lawrence welcomes Sean M Kivlehan, MD, MPH; and Kevin Collopy, MHL, FP-C, NRP; to discuss the search for the next big EMS speaker as well as the Harvard initiative to provide mass casualty training to Ukraine. EMS World Expo takes place October 10-14 in Orlando and one of the returning sessions this year is “Stand and Deliver,” a presentational opportunity for speakers to audition for their place on the national stage. The program was the brainchild of Kivlehan and Collopy, and participants get their chance to present at a national conference as well as receive coaching and constructive feedback on their sessions. The Stand and Deliver winner then gets the opportunity to present their session at the Expo general session at the end of the week. The guests also discuss the Harvard Humanitarian initiative focusing on emergency health systems in conflict and austere environments. When the Ukraine/Russian war escalated, the Harvard group were approached to provide CBRN and mass casualty training throughout Ukraine. About the guests Sean M Kivlehan, MD, MPH, is the director of the Global Emergency Medicine Fellowship at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston. He is a practicing emergency medicine physician in the level one trauma and burn center, and core faculty for the Harvard Affiliated Emergency Medicine Residency. He is an assistant professor of emergency medicine at Harvard Medical School; assistant professor of global health and population at the Harvard Chan School of Public Health; and faculty at the Harvard Humanitarian Initiative. He has worked as a consultant for the World Health Organization's Emergency, Trauma and Acute Care Program and was a New York City paramedic and instructor coordinator for 10 years. Kevin Collopy, MHL, FP-C, NRP, CMTE, is the clinical outcomes and compliance manager for Novant Health AirLink/VitaLink where he oversees the program's research, education, risk management, quality management and reimbursement programs. He regularly speaks across the United States and has taught emergency and wilderness medicine on three continents. He's an author of over 200 articles and book chapters, including 18 peer-reviewed research abstracts and papers. In addition, he serves on several national and international advisory boards, teaches the paramedic program at Cape Fear Community College and is currently overseeing multiple clinical trials. He also maintains his LEAN Healthcare Blackbelt certification, has a master’s in healthcare leadership, and is known for developing and innovating quality management solutions in prehospital care systems.

This episode of EMS One-Stop With Rob Lawrence is brought to you by Lexipol, the experts in policy, training, wellness support and grants assistance for first responders and government leaders. To learn more, visit lexipol.com. “Honorable but broken” is an emotionally compelling documentary from seasoned network news producers Bryony Gilbey and Rich Diefenbach that highlights the realities of working in EMS. The documentary calls attention to the inexcusable underfunding of our first responders and the subsequent collapse of the system. The story told by Gilbey and Diefenbach truly sums up the precipitous state of EMS. In this edition of EMS One-Stop, Rob Lawrence welcomes Bryony Gilbey and returning guest Matt Zavadsky to discuss the documentary, its planned development into a full-length production, exciting sponsorship news and commentary on the issues raised by NAEMT board members that appeared in the film. The discussion and documentary advocate for funding and political change to the current status quo, but as Gilbey asks, “what is life worth to an elected official?”

This episode of EMS One-Stop With Rob Lawrence is brought to you by Lexipol, the experts in policy, training, wellness support and grants assistance for first responders and government leaders. To learn more, visit lexipol.com. On Sept. 12, 2022, American Medical Response announced it is to close its Los Angeles County non-emergency operations over the next 180 days. One of the key reasons is one faced by all ambulance operators at this time – insufficient levels of Medicare reimbursement. Against this backdrop, GMR (AMR’s international EMS division) predicts that its Los Angeles division is on course for an operational deficit of over $3.5 million. In this episode of the Inside EMS podcast, Brian Henricksen, California-based regional director for GMR, joins host Rob Lawrence for a frank discussion on the issues in LA and they discuss the fact that this may be the bellwether of things to come across the nation. Rob is also the executive director of the California Ambulance Association and the economics of ambulance service operations in the state are close to his heart. California has not increased its Medi-Cal reimbursement for private ambulance operators since the late 1990s. The current Medi-Cal base rate for private ambulance services sits just above $100, which is far below the cost of providing transport. The State’s Medi-Cal reimbursement rate is one of the lowest in the country, but it also has the highest operational costs for ambulance transports.

This episode of EMS One-Stop With Rob Lawrence is brought to you by Lexipol, the experts in policy, training, wellness support and grants assistance for first responders and government leaders. To learn more, visit lexipol.com. In this episode of the Inside EMS podcast, Host Rob Lawrence is joined by Alexia Jobson of REMSA Health and Mark Tenia of the Richmond Ambulance Authority. Rob, Mark and Alexia are taking communications on the road this conference season in a number of pre-conference sessions. The team discusses: How to communicate your organization’s message How to make friends of the reporters in your local media market How to pitch a story How to prepare for when things go wrong Rob, Alexia and Mark also discuss the downside of offering “no comment” to a reporter, as well as tips for dealing with live and pre-recorded interviews. Finally, Rob discusses the free training available at the Emergency Management Institute at Emmitsburg, Maryland. Read next: 5 best practices for media appearances by EMS chiefs and field personnel

This episode of EMS One-Stop With Rob Lawrence is brought to you by Lexipol, the experts in policy, training, wellness support and grants assistance for first responders and government leaders. To learn more, visit lexipol.com. In a continuation of the Inside EMS podcast, Host Rob Lawrence picks up the EMS leadership discussion with Robbie MacCue, FP-C, MBA and Lisa Giruzzi of the EMS Leadership Academy. Robbie, Lisa and Rob discuss a systems approach to leadership, emotional intelligence, encouraging freedom of thought, relationship building, effective listening and – above all – the ability to communicate at all levels. Robbie and Lisa will be launching the 4th Annual Leadership Summit on September 20-24th, virtual and free at www.emsleadershipsummit.com.

This episode of EMS One-Stop With Rob Lawrence is brought to you by Lexipol, the experts in policy, training, wellness support and grants assistance for first responders and government leaders. To learn more, visit lexipol.com. Durham County, North Carolina, commissioners recently passed a pay increase for paramedics. The increase, which went into effect in August, took the starting hourly rate for paramedics from $20.84 to $28.25. Officials said the current staff will receive this rate and a multiplier based on their years of service to determine their final salary. One of the catalysts for this change occurred when Durham EMS Chief Paramedic, Mark Lockhart, read an article by Lexipol Editorial Director, Greg Friese, MS, NRP, “Pay paramedics a thriving wage to end the retention crisis,” and was inspired by the approach Greg suggested. “The thriving wage initiative was born,” Lockhart noted. Across the board (EMT, AEMT, paramedics and supervisors), the average increase is 16.8%. For paramedics, the average salary increase was 25%. “We’re still facing recruitment challenges, but our retention significantly improved,” Lockhart wrote EMS1. In this week’s podcast, Host Rob Lawrence welcomes both Mark Lockhart and Greg Friese to discuss the process that Durham EMS went through to achieve their increase as well as the pay situation across the EMS profession at the moment.

This episode of EMS One-Stop With Rob Lawrence is brought to you by Lexipol, the experts in policy, training, wellness support and grants assistance for first responders and government leaders. To learn more, visit lexipol.com. In this episode of EMS One-Stop, Host Rob Lawrence speaks with Melissa Harris, owner of AmbuServe Ambulance and Shoreline Ambulance operating in the greater Los Angeles area, while recording at the California Ambulance Association Stars of Life event in Sacramento, California. Melissa describes how she began her EMS life and now owns and operates two ambulance companies, and pays homage to her staff. She also discusses the challenges that keep EMS leaders up at night, and current legislative challenges and associated calls to action. Rob then speaks with AmbuServe Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, Jim Karras, who interviews his three CAA Star of Life recipients, Ethan Garmon, Wesley Graves and Caitlyn Humphrey. They discuss the highs and lows of delivering service in the pandemic, and offer advice for new medics. The full interview with Ethan, Wesley and Caitlynn is available on Ambuserve’s Real EMS podcast.

This episode of EMS One-Stop With Rob Lawrence is brought to you by Lexipol, the experts in policy, training, wellness support and grants assistance for first responders and government leaders. To learn more, visit lexipol.com. Just over three months ago, Rob Luckritz assumed his new appointment as the Chief of Austin Travis County EMS, Texas. He got the job after a very public selection process where he not only competed against internal, time-served candidates, but also a list of very qualified external candidates. Thanks to the transparency of the process, the public, both in Austin, and far and wide, were able to follow the process every step of the way. In this episode of EMS One-Stop, Host Rob Lawrence catches up with Rob Luckritz to discuss his first 100 days in office. Luckritz describes his reception so far, what he has found and his future plans for ATCEMS. He also offers advice for young EMS leaders aspiring to get a senior job at an organization such as ATCEMS and how to prepare for an EMS leadership career. Luckritz also takes part in a quick-fire round, highlighting his thoughts on our current EMS challenges from recruiting to available ambulances and everything in between.