Emergency medical services

“ Across the Nation, emergency medical services teams are working to cut the death rate from medical emergencies still further. They are working to advance and adapt their skills and training as new methods of emergency treatment are developed. And they are working to educate every American on what each of us can do to cooperate with and to improve the emergency medical services in our own communities. It is also appropriate that we as a Nation should recognize the value and importance of emergency medical services teams. ”

“ Emergency medical services personnel provide a vital public service 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Traumatic injury is the leading cause of death and disability for men, women, and children between the ages of 1 and 44 years. ”

“ The medical service provides treatment and preventive medicine for military personnel and, in certain circumstances, for dependents and for persons employed by the military. Its services are also available to the public at large during individual emergencies, if they are the most immediately available, and on a larger scale during epidemics or natural disasters. Military personnel may also avail themselves of emergency facilities in nonmilitary hospitals or clinics. ”

“ All share a common aspiration to help those in need, and during Emergency Medical Services Week, we express our appreciation for their critical work. Now, Therefore, I, Barack Obama, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim May 17 through May 23, 2009, as Emergency Medical Services Week. I encourage all Americans to observe this occasion by sharing their support with local EMS workers and taking steps to improve their personal safety and preparedness. ”

“ Last year, these tags and services helped save the lives of an estimated two thousand people with hidden medical conditions.
Millions of additional Americans can protect themselves and help to improve the effectiveness of emergency medical care in this country by registering with a medic alert service. ”

“ At some point, virtually all of us or members of our families have witnessed or benefited from the life-saving actions of the dedicated members of emergency medical service teams. These skillful Americans richly deserve the gratitude and esteem of all their countrymen, every day of the year and especially during Emergency Medical Services Week. ”

“ As a result, the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare, and the Department of Transportation, together with several other Federal agencies, will continue to work closely with States and communities to improve medical emergency services. Although many cities enjoy satisfactory services, the great majority of our communities, especially in rural areas, still require considerable improvement. ”

“ Pilot Projects- The Secretary shall award a contract or grant under subsection (a) to an eligible entity that proposes a pilot project to design, implement, and evaluate an emergency medical and trauma system that-- (1) coordinates with public health and safety services, emergency medical services, medical facilities, trauma centers, and other entities in a region to develop an approach to emergency medical and trauma system access throughout the region, including 9-1-1 Public Safety Answering Points and emergency medical dispatch ”

“ The HSS response may be in the form of special medical augmentation teams (SMART) support from US Army Medical Command resources or HSS (table of organization and equipment [TOE] ) units may be directed to respond. Normally, responding TOE units will provide HSS to nonmedical military responders. However, the HSS mission may be to provide support to the lead federal agency or civilian public health organizations, emergency medical services (ambulance crews) , or hospitals. ”

“ Whether they are assisting during natural disasters or providing lifesaving care after car accidents, heart attacks, sports injuries, or violent crime, EMS personnel respond to tens of millions of requests for help each year in our country. ”

“ Effective mass casualty management requires careful planning. The guide is designed to support such planning by providing medical planners and staff personnel with a systematic means for estimating the number of biological casualties. However, casualty management also involves practice of self-aid and buddy aid, on-site triage and emergency care, decontamination, transport to medical facilities, infection control measures, communications, health services, logistics, and evacuation by ground or air transportation. ”

“ Section 1102 Definitions As used in this part:
(1) "Emergency health services" means medical and dental care for the civilian population in all of their specialties and adjunct therapeutic fields, and the planning, provision, and operation of first aid stations, hospitals, and clinics; preventive health services, including detection, identification and control of communicable diseases, their vectors, and other public health hazards, inspection and control of purity and safety of food, drugs, and biologicals; vital statistics services ”

“ We commend these efforts to develop innovative new treatments, advance and adapt medical skills, establish stronger professional standards, and promote public education and health. This week, we thank our EMS professionals for their sustained commitment to excellence and dedication to service, and share our hopes for a bright future that will make us all safer and healthier. ”

“ Inclusive emergency medical systems play a significant role in reducing mortality and disability due to injuries. Quality emergency medical care saves lives and reduces disability by linking pre-hospital, hospital, and rehabilitation services that provide optimal care for all Americans. ”

“ Two groups of dedicated Americans provide this kind of medical care: emergency department personnel, who provide care in trauma centers, and emergency medical technicians and paramedics, most of them volunteers, who provide prehospital emergency care.
These emergency medical personnel throughout our Nation are specialists trained to handle illnesses and injuries which threaten life or limb. They must be available daily on a 24-hour basis to all patients who need medical aid. The efforts of these trained men and women have saved thousands of lives. ”

“ The term "emergency medical care, including hospitalization" as used in this section shall be construed to mean such medical care or hospitalization that normally must be rendered promptly after occurrence of the illness or injury as a result of which it is required, and discharged by a physician or facility subsequent to such medical care or hospitalization shall prima facie terminate the period of emergency. ”

“ In this emergency service there should be utilized all available physicians such as school and factory physicians, volunteers, practitioners on a paid basis, fourth year medical students, etc. This service should cover all calls reported as unreached by private physicians or received through other channels, and should be co-ordinated with the special nursing service, being provided with automobile transportation, machines being hired if necessary.
3. The emergency medical service should be used to select cases needing hospital care. ”

“ To amend the Public Health Service Act to provide grants to States to streamline State requirements and procedures for veterans with military emergency medical training to become civilian emergency medical technicians. ”

“ Emergency medical care, like other elements of our Nation's health care system, depends for its effectiveness on the support of the American people. By contributing to the lifesaving capabilities of rescue personnel and other health professionals, we improve our prospects for continued good health. ”

“ Considerations for at-risk populations– The Secretary shall take steps to ensure that an appropriate specialized and focused range of public health and medical capabilities are represented in the National Disaster Medical System, which take into account the needs of at-risk individuals, in the event of a public health emergency.. ”

“ For the first an emergency case, similar to that in use in England, Germany, and other Red Cross Treaty Nations, and this has been adapted to Red Cross needs and methods under the direct supervision of the Medical Board of the Red Cross Hospital. It contains material and surgical dressings of the best class known to modern surgery. A most valuable part of the permanent equipment of this emergency case is a series of emergency charts, arranged for instantaneous reference, giving simple brief instructions for dealing with every conceivable case of accident, pending the arrival of the doctor. ”

“ When an accident of acute occupational disease hazards occurs or is likely to occur, the employer shall immediately adopt emergency rescue and control measures and at the same time report to the local public health administration department and any relevant departments. ”

“ In the event of a maritime accident or distress, the relevant local government shall, in a timely manner, organize medical institutions to provide emergency medical assistance for the persons in distress, provide necessary livelihood support for the persons rescued, and coordinate relevant parties to take measures to do the windup work. ”

“ One hospital alone has a capacity for 20,000 beds. At an emergency call, the hospitals can handle twenty per cent. of the whole Amexforce. To begin with the trenches, the Medical Department has introduced a sort of folding litter that can go around corners without having to make a man who's hit get out and walk around the bends. When he gets to the dressing station or collecting hospital, motor ambulances are ready to take him back to the evacuating hospital, where the women nurses take their chances with the men, eight to ten miles behind the line. ”

“ At this time of great change in our health care system, patients need a guarantee that they can see a specialist and go to the nearest emergency room; a guarantee that their doctor can discuss the best treatment options, not just the cheapest ”

“ Vast improvements in emergency medicine have been made in the past fifteen years, and emergency department personnel have completed extensive training and continuing education to keep up with these improvements. ”

“ They are also teaching individuals what to do if an emergency strikes. Many firefighters who are also trained as paramedics and emergency medical technicians are helping to save lives by instructing citizens in first aid—including cardiopulmonary resuscitation. ”

“ DETERMINATION BY FACILITY ASCERTAINING CAUSE OF DEATH.—If a victim of an emergency is transported by emergency response employees to a medical facility and the victim dies at or before reaching the medical facility, the medical facility ascertaining the cause of death shall notify the designated officer of the emergency response employees who transported the victim to the initial medical facility of any determination by the medical facility that the victim had an airborne infectious disease. ”

“ Emergency service providers including police, firefighters and paramedics are working at full strength, but most services not directly related to public safety, including street sweeping, will not be provided. ”

“ Elite Federal Disaster Teams- The Surgeon General, in consultation with the Secretary, the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and other appropriate military and Federal government agencies, shall develop criteria for the appointment of highly qualified Track faculty, medical, dental, physician assistant, pharmacy, behavioral and mental health, public health, and nursing students, and graduates to elite Federal disaster preparedness teams to train and to respond to public health emergencies, natural disasters, bioterrorism events, and other emergencies. ”

“ If an accident occurs, it will find a thorough organization with funds in hand and ready to begin work without any preliminaries.
Lectures on first aid are delivered by the district physicians along the line of the Canal to members of the police and fire departments. To what extent this instruction will aid in time of emergency is conjectural, but it should have the effect of adding instructed men to the corps of nurses and doctors in case of a big accident. ”