How EMS impacts our care of patients in the ER

You are right on. Working in the field is very different that working in the ED. We don't see what EMS sees and it is up to them to try to make us understand the scene. They have an extremely hard job an deserve every bit of courtesy and thanks that we can provide.

Thank you-as an 8 year EMT I can't tell you how frustrating it is to roll into the ER and try to give report only to be ignored as the RN/DR interrogates your patient. We are required to give a report but no one really wants it-yes the patient is (usually) the best source of info however just once I'd like someone to pay attention to my report!!

Yes-we (my fire/ rescue dept) have done this on occasion, rather by accident (someone just happens to have their digital camera with them!). The ER folks seemed to appreciate being able to visualize the actual scene (a picture IS worth a thousand words). However, its a delicate thing-you have to be really cautious about confidentiality-I take pictures at alot of "scenes" for the FD and squad but I am careful about taking faces. Even emergency personnel can get nervous about being recorded--in one instance a medic was loading a pt. on the helicopter WITHOUT her turnout coat and helmet. I took pictures and she asked me to make sure her boss didn't see! However-back to your original question-I do think its a good idea for MOI, indeed some things are just too weird to explain!!

The stories sound even better when you have pictures to back it up. I been on the sending and receiving end of both. It does feel good when a Nurse or Doctor acts like they are listening. CCU Nurse 6 yrs-fire/rescue 11.

I wanted to say THANK YOU for an informative and very important article addressing the important relationship between EMS and RN. I am a new RN in the NICU environment. I spent 10 years as a Paramedic, 3 years as a flight paramedic. Many people devalue the critical importance of a good structured face to face paramedic to rn report. Photos are a nice addition. Clear communication is paramount in the chain of healthcare, and oftentimes interviewing a pt without listening to the prehospital report is ignoring some very important facts. I.E. The platinum 10 minutes in getting off scene to getting a critical trauma pt to the OR to maintain the golden hour, and reperfusion timing for CVA and AMI. Thanks again. Helicoptergal

i cant tell you how many times a nurse has completely ignored my when it comes time to give report in the ED... interestingly enough the MD usually takes more interest.