Experts Weigh In: What’s Ahead for EMS Data

A group of EMS leaders came together this year to examine the current state of data collection and use in EMS. What they found were several obstacles—but also many opportunities.

“We are seeing—down to the medic level—the importance of data and information [in] driving change in practice,” says Marianne Gausche-Hill, MD. “Getting there was an evolution and a maturity that had to happen. EMS systems started in 1969 in the U.S. I think this move toward a focus on information and data is part of the maturation of a specialty.”

Gaushe-Hill, the director of EMS and of the EMS and pediatric emergency medicine fellowships at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center, was a participant in a committee convened by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) Office of EMS. The committee, chaired by John Becknell, PhD, a partner in the consulting firm SafeTech Solutions, met with more than 40 stakeholders from across the industry to receive a wide range of input from the community. The final report will be released later this fall.

Several paths forward were discussed, according to members of the group, including the need to create an information-driven culture in EMS, renewing the profession’s focus on applying data and information, and funding improved data and information collection and analysis.

“Historically, the EMS industry has operated in a reactive paradigm,” Becknell says. “Many decisions in EMS are made today from a reactive standpoint. What we would like to see is a culture of information, so when we are presented with a challenge or a problem, we pause and ask how can we shed more light with data to help address the challenge.”

Committee members also emphasized the need for new and existing data collection systems to be built in ways that make them interoperable and easy to integrate, are provider-friendly and are continuously evaluated. Appropriate funding for these systems is essential, and new technologies will play a critical role in helping the EMS industry link information systems and provide meaningful ways to analyze data.

“I think ultimately technology is a great enabler to do better things, provided you know how to take advantage of it,” says Chris Dillie, President and CEO of ESO Solutions and a member of the committee. “When it comes to data, it is about how we take data and make it information for the organization that is actionable. I think as you look into the future, we are looking more toward predictive analytics, predictive modeling.”

Members of the panel also emphasize the need to encourage the use of data and information within EMS at every level. Industry and agency leaders as well as individual caregivers must all recognize the value of information and data in their work.

“What we want to do is encourage the hunger for more information-driven decision-making,” says Becknell. He points to the importance of “deepening the conversation with local providers, agencies, and systems about the fact that we can gather data in simple ways as well as complex ways.”

“One way to do this is through education,” adds Becknell. “It’s also about working with the states and many of the great software developers and vendors out there so we reduce complexity and encourage compatibility. We want people to see that data doesn’t need to be as complex as we once thought. It might be a deep, complex quality process, but it doesn’t need to be.”

After meeting with a diverse set of people across the profession, the experts brought together by NHTSA also recognized that many stakeholders feel data collection in EMS has greatly improved but still does not meet all of their needs.

“The NEMSIS project is an amazing project, and I don’t think it should be abandoned or anything like that,” says Gausche-Hill. “But I think one of the things we realized is that the national dataset really can’t do everything for everybody, and that’s okay.”

In fact, one need not served by the National EMS Information System, or NEMSIS, is collecting information on operations not directly related to patient care but still vitally important to EMS agencies.

“There is a great need for data that goes beyond just the clinical data,” says Dillie. “Organizations are struggling with hiring, retention, reimbursement, supply management and a host of other issues. I would bet if we sat down with a group of chiefs and directors we’d hear less about clinical data and more about the challenges of running the business of EMS.”

In addition to Becknell, Dillie and Gausche-Hill, the panel included several EMS system leaders and data experts from across the country.

“The future of EMS depends on our profession using information to make decisions and providing evidence-based care,” says Jon Krohmer, MD, director of the NHTSA Office of EMS, which oversees NEMSIS. “The work done by this panel will help set the stage for future improvements that are data-driven in order to best serve American communities.”