Traveling the EMS World

     It is a sad fact that few Americans ever venture overseas. Estimates state that only a quarter of U.S. citizens actually have passports. There is no doubt that travel broadens the mind and just as you may be curious about how EMS is delivered across the United States, there is a lot to be learned from how it is structured and implemented in other countries.

     It has been our editorial mission this year to bring you practical solutions to critical industry issues that are being implemented by agencies nationwide. In this issue, we widen our focus to look at some of the problems facing EMS systems worldwide and the solutions being brought to bear by EMS agencies in different countries. This month's cover report by Associate Editor John Erich discusses issues impacting the delivery of prehospital care in Canada, the United Kingdom and Australia in Global Perspectives on page 59.

     In the Canadian province of Ontario, hospital offload delays have been taken very seriously in recent years. One solution currently implemented is the Community Referral by EMS program, where paramedics can refer patients who don't have emergency health problems to the appropriate care resource.

     While EMS as a profession is held in much higher regard in Australia than in the States, paramedic recruitment remains an ongoing problem. Access to training is an issue and has been addressed by shifting open student positions from less popular degree programs to bachelor's-level paramedic courses.

     Violence against EMS providers in the United Kingdom has been at epidemic proportions in recent years. In 2004, a U.K. healthcare watchdog reported that ambulance staff experienced more violence and bullying than any other employees of the country's National Health Service. Front-line providers are currently receiving conflict resolution training and advertising campaigns have been launched to educate the community about the chronic problem of violence against healthcare providers, with zero tolerance for attacks on ambulance workers.

     As you can see, the problems facing EMS worldwide are more familiar than foreign, and we can all benefit from learning about the best practices being implemented by our fellow medics around the world.