Prehospital Telemedicine and EMS Integration

Abstract

Prehospital medicine is rapidly evolving in both scope and purpose with telemedicine providing novel opportunities to offer support and oversight to emergency medical service providers while bringing advanced care to the site of illness or injury. In this chapter, the history, development, and sustainability of prehospital telemedicine programs are discussed while highlighting past, current, and possible future applications. The challenges associated with expanding prehospital telemedicine and the need to address them with innovative funding models, stakeholder buy-in, and a thorough understanding of varying local prehospital systems and their interplay with existing regulatory frameworks are also discussed. This chapter will provide a framework for understanding the complex and evolving nature of prehospital telemedicine in a practical context. Growth in this field is rapid, so this chapter looks to encourage further expansion of programs by highlighting current successful programs. This includes mobile telestroke with the development of mobile stroke units, community paramedicine, emergency department avoidance, and specialty interfacility transport.