What You Need to Know:
– Philips launches its new pre-hospital informatics solution for emergency responders in the U.S. market and will debut it at HIMSS 2020 next week.
– Emergency medical service personnel are facing rising demands in their roles while also encountering challenging and diverse cases that require better technology to meet patient needs.
– By providing real-time, bidirectional feedback between emergency responders on the scene and doctors in the hospital awaiting the arrival of the patient, the solution helps emergency responders provide the best care possible in unpredictable pre-hospital environments.
Royal Philips, a global leader in health technology, today announced the U.S. launch of its pre-hospital informatics solution to provide real-time, bidirectional feedback between emergency responders on the scene and doctors in the hospital awaiting the arrival of the patient. The combination of Philips’ rugged, advanced vital signs monitor and its new emergency care informatics web-based dashboard enables emergency teams to capture and transmit clinical data to remote specialists, allowing the team at the hospital to immediately review a patient’s vitals and plan for their arrival. The solution aims to help emergency responders provide the best care possible in unpredictable pre-hospital environments.
Growing Need for Real-Time Bidirectional Feedback Between EMS and Doctors
The role of Emergency medical services (EMS) has evolved drastically, as they now face both clinical and operational challenges in trying to address the needs of patients. Caregivers experience unpredictable workloads in uncontrolled situations with the expectation they will diagnose, treat and transport patients where necessary. Challenges are exacerbated by lagging technological advancements, particularly in relation to flexibility of use and data acquisition. Monitors and defibrillators are typically bulky and heavy, while data collection remains a predominantly manual and retrospective process.
Data automation and more reliable communication capabilities, paired with smaller and lighter monitors, can empower emergency responders to provide care closer to home, avoid unnecessary transports, and better allocate resources, helping to achieve the quadruple aim of improved outcomes, enhanced satisfaction for caregivers and patients, and reduced costs.
“Emergency medical service personnel are increasingly sharing that the rising demands placed on first responders coupled with the challenging and diverse cases they see require improved technology to meet patient needs,” said Arman Voskerchyan, General Manager for Therapeutic Care at Philips. “Emergency care is no longer just about resuscitation – there are higher incidences of cardiovascular disease, increasing co-morbidities, and a rapidly growing aging population. With these changes, EMS providers need better access to data and resources to help them adapt and equip them with the information needed to save lives.”
Philips’ emergency care informatics suite has already been in use in Europe, helping care teams spot life-threatening conditions remotely, improve accuracy of support from on-scene crews, and enhance tailoring of in-hospital care based on pre-hospital physiology. The combination of Philips’ rugged, advanced vital signs monitor and its new emergency care informatics web-based dashboard enables emergency teams to capture and transmit clinical data to remote specialists, allowing the team at the hospital to immediately review a patient’s vitals and plan for their arrival.
The launch of the new emergency care informatics suite in the U.S. market builds off Philips’ commitment to providing a robust portfolio of emergency care offerings. In October 2019, Philips announced a first-of-its-kind collaboration with Air Ambulance Kent Surrey Sussex (AAKSS) where helicopter Emergency Service (HEMS) teams were able to live stream patient medical information from the scene to the hospital through the Philips pre-hospital solution.