EMS Policy Minutes 01/15/2010
m~i~~llWirn~
Fiala ..~ ~.
Hiller. '
Henning ~
Coyle
Coletta
January 15, 2010
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MINUTES OF THE MEETING OF THE COLLIER COUNTY
EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERVICES
POLICY
ADVISORY BOARD
Naples, Florida, January 15, 20 I 0
LET [1' BE REMEMBERED that the Collier County Emergency Medical Services
Policy Advisory Board, having conducted business herein, met on this date at
3:30 PM in REGULAR SESSION at the Neighborhood Health Clinic, 12 Goodlette
Road N., Naples, Florida, with the following Members present:
CHAIRMAN:
Vice Chair:
James Talano, M.D. (Excused)
Chief Robert Metzger
Chief Walter Kopka
Linda Mitchell, RN
Steve Shafor (Excused)
ALSO PRESENT: Dr. Robert Tober, Collier County Medical Director
Jeff Page, Chief, Bureau of Emergency Services
Jennifer Florin, Administrative Assistant, EMS
Dan Bowman, Deputy Chief, Bureau of Emergency Services
MIsc. Corres.
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COLLIER COUNTY EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERVICES
POLICY ADVISORY BOARD
AGENDA
MEETING TO BE HELD:
Neighborhood Health Clinic
120 Ooodlelte Road North, 2"" floor meeting room
Naples, Florida
DATE: January 15, 2010
TIME: 3:30 P.M.
Call to Order
Pledge of AllegIance
Establish Quorum
Agenda
AdditionsfDeletions
Adoption of Agenda
Minntes from Previous Meeting
AdditionslDeJetionslCorrections
Adoption of Minutes
November 2011> Minutes
Old Bnsiness
Adoption of Bylaws
New Business
a) JEMS Back to Basics BLS care article
b) JEMS Toronlo ALS/BLS model
0) JAM A IV Meds vs No IV Meds OOHCA
d) SALT device and intubation
Public Comment
Board Member Discussion
Establish Next Meeting Date
Adjournment
January 15, 2010
Call to Order
Pledge of Allegiance
Establish Qnorum
The Meeting was called to order at 3:35 P.M. by Vicc Chainnan Robcrt Melzger and a
quorum was eSlablished.
The Pledge of Allegiance was recited.
Commissioner Fred Coyle at/ended
Agenda
AdditionallDeletions
Adoption of Agenda
Linda Mitchell moved to adopt the Agenda as slIbmltted. Second by Walter Kopka.
Carried /wallllllollsly, 3-0.
Minutes from PrevIous Meeting
AdditionslDeletionslCorrections
Adoption of Minutes
November 20, 2009
Walter Kopka lIIoved to approve the Minl/tes from the November 20, 2009 Meetillg as
slIbmlt/ed. Second by Lillda Mitchell. Ca/'ded IIlIalllmollsly, 3-0.
Old Business
Adoption of Bylaws
Jennifer Florin, Administrative Assistanl - Bureau of Emergency Services, confinned lhe
Advisory Board members had not submitted any changes to the Bylaws since the lasl
meeting.
Walter Kopka moved to approve the Bylaws as sIIbmitted, Secolld by Linda Mitchell.
Carried IIIumimollsly, 3-0.
New Bnsiness
a) JEMS - "Back to the Basics - The Lost Art of BLS Care" (article), December, 2009
Dr. Tober gave a PowerPoint presenlation and outlined lhe points contained in the article:
the previous standard for emergency medical pcrsonnel was Basic Lifc Support training
wilh Advanced Life Supporl-trained personnel as the exception. He stated there was a
lendency to move 100 quickly to A LS-intcrvention before B LS proccdures are completed,
and his goal was to shift lllc focus back to a strong foundation ofBLS training and to
improve response time 10 approximately tour minutes,
His concern is the deleriora\ion of ALS skills due to the incrcasing numbcr of paramedics
because some paramedics do not receives an opportunity to praclice skills on a frequent
basis, while BLS skills should be practiccd on a rcgular basis since BLS response should
be the first on scene.
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January 15,2010
Linda Mitchell asked if a paramedic and an EMT were both on a scene, would both
administer ALS instead of BLS care.
Dr. Tober replied when there is a joint team working, the efforts have been coordinated.
He referenced the East and North Naples Fire Districts which hircd a largc numbcr of
paramedics who have jumped to ALS skills without a coordinated BLS intervention.
He cited fi"Om the JEMS article:
"As more and more fire departments realize that their futures are staked
on the ability to positiol/themselves as Fonlline EMS provider". pammedic
'saturatioll'ls llkely 10 comil/ue. It's therefore incumbent on those in the
field to acknowledge the problems thai can result from abselll or inadequate
BLS care and incorporale into their paradigm and oil-scene procedures a
strong commitmem tv appreciating and implementing the prillciples under-
lying the admollitioll, 'BLS comes bejore ALS. "
He stated a greater effort is nceded to teach the community how to adminisler CPR until
EMS arrives and suggested 10 resume broadcasling the five-minute instroction tape on the
Counly's cable channel.
Vice Chairman Metzger welcomed Commissioner Coyle to the Advisory Board.
He also asked if other studies, in addition to the OPAL Study, were available that
compared similar populalions in syslems that ran BLS versus ALS, based solely on
cardiac mns.
Dr. Tober stated lhe first five minules 10 ten milllltes of an emergency medical situation
impacls patient livelihood and almost any patient can be stabilized by enhanced CPR. He
further stated he was not aware of any article specifically suggcsting that a "saturation" of
paramedics has positively affecled the heallh and wellbeing of a community.
Vice Chairman Mctzger asked what was done, after reviewing the run reports from
NOIth Naples and East Naplcs, to identify and corrccl the situation with the Fire Districls.
Dr. Tobcr slated the deviations from established protocol werc rcvicwcd with the
Departments' training officers.
Vice Chairman Metzger asked if the medical response data compiled by Collier County
had been kept in lhc samc fonnat for the past tcn years
Chief Jeff Page slaled the format was revised, as reqnested by the Fire Chiefs, and is
more inclusive.
Vice Chairman Metzger lISked if dala was collected for "Signal 7 Declarations" and
further asked Staff to supply the data for cardiac arrest runs lhat were worked and not
worked in order to understand how the runs have evolved over tillle and how to atlribule
the improvements.
Chief Page will provide lhe dala at the next Advisory Board meeting.
b) JEMS - "Toronto Tests New ALS/BLS Model" - August, 2009
The author stated, "." mallY others accepted the all-ALS theory that was based 0/1 :vou
/lever know what could go wro/lg' 011 a call. Research /lOW shows that we don't lIeed
ALS 011 all calls. In fact. only about 5% of calls lIeed ALS. "
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January 15,2010
Dr. Tober slated similar data was reviewed to evaluate Collier County's protocols. Hc
noted low blood sugar can kill quickly and is considered to be a life-threalening issue.
The use of glucometers in Collier's system is considered to be a BLS skill. He suggested
au EKG hook-up and LV. initiation, when prophylactic, could also be a BLS skill.
Vice Chairman Metzger questioned whcther taking an ALS unit out of service for a
BLS transport was the best use ofthc resourec. He askcd if the focus was to expand the
BLS footprint, should belter ways to utilize ALS transport for serious incidents be
explored, and find alternative methods for BLS transport.
Dr. Tober statcd he was not aware lhal A LS rcsponsc was suffering. The focus is to
shrink BLS response times.
Discussion ensued concerning olher options such as:
. Utilizing private providers for nOll-emergency transpOlis
. Subsequent loss of revenue
. The need to keep thc system as cost effeclive as possible
. How 10 maximize resourccs.
Also discussed:
· compRling data to agree on a definition ofwhal constitutcs an ALS call
· current revenue stream - 50% is call-generated and 50% from Ad Valorcm taxes
. Operation "Zone Coverage"
c) JAMA: "LV. Meds vs. No LV, Meds" - OOHCA, November, 2009
01'. Tober oullincd the article:
COlltext: Intravenous access and drug administration arc included in Advanced Cardiac
Life Support (ACLS) guidelines despite a lack of evidence to improve oulcomes.
Obieclive: To determine whelher removing intravenous drug administration fj'om an
ACLS protocol would improve survival to hospilal discharge after out-of-hospital cardiac
arrest.
Main Outcome Measures: The primary outcome was survival to hospital discharge.
Conclusion: Compared with palienls who rcceived ACLS without intravenous drug
administration following out-of-hospital cardiac arrcsl, patients wilh intravenous access
and drug adminislration had higher rates of short-term survival wilh no slatistically
significant improvemenl in survival to hospital dischargc. quaJily of CPR, or long-term
survival.
Dr. Tober stated mosl of the individuals sent home fi.om hospilal in Collier County
rcceived CPR and treatment within four to five minutes from onset of the emergency call.
d) S.A.L.T. Device aud Intubation
01'. Tober explained how the device is used, lhat il was developed by the Almy Corps of
Engineers and had 99% success rate when used in Afghanistan. He stated it was nol
necessary 10 stop CPR in order to intubale using the device, and allows for blind
insertion, unlike a laryngoscope.
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January 15, 2010
Copies ofaliicles from Emergency Physicians Monthly, dated January 12,2010, and The
Washington Posl, dated December 4, 2008, were distributed to the members for review.
Public Comment
None
Board Member Discussion
. VIce Chairman Metzger questioned whether the Advisory Board was laskcd to examine
any outstanding system issues relaled to Q/ A ("Quality Assurance") or concerns raised by
the public in its capacity to interacl with Collier EMS.
There was a discussion concerning the charge fi.om the Board of Counly Commissioncrs
outlined in the Ordinance which crcated thc Advisory Buard.
Reference: Section Two, "Functions, Powers and Duties," Ordinance #2009-0 I, states:
"The Advisory Board shall have Ihefollowing duties:
1. To review alld advise the Board of Coullty Commissiollers of all issues
cOllcerning pre-hospilal emergellcy medical services within Collier County.
2. To heal' all disputes arising out of the ALS Ellgine Interlocal Agreements
betweell Collier COllllty and Ihe various Fire Districts, and make written
recommendations to the Board of County Commissioners jor resolution of
such disputes.
3. To 1V0rk to improve and enhallce pre-hospital emergency medical care within
Collier County.
4. To review and make written recommendation to the Board ofCounlY
Commissioners of all changes to established protocol and practices
recommended by the Medical Director's Quality Assurance Committee.
5. To make its special knowledge and expertise GI'ai/able 10 the Board ofCmmty
Commissioners upon wriflell request by the Board ofCol/my Commissioners. "
Commissioner Coyle staled the intenl of lhe Board of County Commissioners was for thc
Advisory Board to serve as a coordinating committee and sounding board for any changes
to protocol, organizational responsibilities, or anything else conceming the administration
of emergency medical services within Collier County.
It is the responsibility ofthe Board of COllnly Commissioners to make final decisions
concerning lhe issues examined by the Advisory Board and its rccommcndations to the
BCe.
He slaled the BCC is interested in the goal of improving response times and welcome a
clear definition of the steps to bc taken 10 achieve the goaL New technology, such as
SAL.T., is also of interest to the BCC as well as a definition of BLS skills.
The Advis01Y Board is to make recomme1ldations regarding the course of action to be
lake1l by the Board of Call lily Commissiollers.
Chief Kopka stated lhe articles presented should help to lead the Advisory Board in a
direction, such as an emphasis on improving inilial BLS lraining.
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January 15,2010
Dr. Tober staled EMS is developing a more aggressive first aid training program for the
ColIier County Sheriffs Office and leach basic CPR to bus drivcrs and cmployees ofthe
County's Department of Parks and Recreation. He stated another issue is 10 examine how
the Fire Departments can help distribute its vehicles for fasler BLS response times.
. Linda Mitehell asked if the members were aware of any articles concerning the hand-off
of care in hospitals.
Next Meeting Date
April 23, 20 10 from 3:30 to 5;00 PM at lhe Neighborhood Health Clinic located al
12 Goodlette Road N., Naples, Florida.
*****
There being uo further business for the good of the County, the Meeting concluded by
order ofthe Viee Chair at 4:45 PM.
COLLIER COUNTY EMERGENCY MEDICAL
SERVICES POLICY ADVISORY BOARD
--rJ2- ~
~il\1etzger, 'ee
The Minutes were apnroved hy the Board/Committee Chair on
as presented v7 , or as amended
9d-1 I/o
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