By Greg Friese
FALLS CHURCH, Va. — The draft Version 3 of the Model EMS Clinical Guidelines, available here to read or download, has been released for review and public comment.
For comments to be considered prior to the next phase of the project, they must be submitted by Sept. 24, 2021, using an online form.
The Model EMS Clinical Guidelines are designed to provide a resource for EMS clinical practice, appropriate patient care, safety of patients and clinicians, and outcomes regardless of the existing resources and capabilities within an EMS system. The 420-page Version 3 document provides a clinical standard that can be used as is or adapted for use on a state, regional, local or organizational level to enhance patient care and to set benchmark performance of EMS practice.
For Version 3, all the 2017 guidelines have been reviewed and updated, and additional guidelines and new evidence-based guidelines have been added. New guidelines have been added to the 2022 edition for the following clinical conditions or scenarios:
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Abdominal Pain
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Active Shooter Incidents
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Airway/Respiratory Irritants
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Amputation
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Back Pain
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Biologic/Infectious Agents
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Cardiac Devices
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Crush Syndrome
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Dextrose 10% versus Dextrose 50%
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End of Life
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Palliative Care
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Human Trafficking
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Hypertension
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Impaled Objects
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Riot Control Agents
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Sickle Cell Crisis
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Termination of Resuscitative Efforts
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Tracheostomy/Laryngectomy
The NASEMSO project team, consisting of members of the NASEMSO Medical Directors Council and representatives from six EMS medical director stakeholder organizations (AAEM, ACEP, AAP-COPEM, ACS-COT, AMPA and NAEMSP), has reviewed and updated all existing guidelines, as well as added five new guidelines.
In addition, all guidelines have been reviewed by a team of pediatric emergency medicine physicians, pharmacologists and other technical reviewers.