New Technology Offers More Effective Care for Patients

A new electronic patient care reporting system is being used by Irving paramedics to help save lives.

The new technology has replaced paper forms, and data is now recorded once, with fewer errors, allowing the city to make more staff available for ambulance calls.

The system has many functions that are beneficial to both patients and health care workers. If a patient has been transported within the last calendar year, the system can retrieve his/her medical history, medications and allergies. EMS personnel also can use the system to isolate injuries and illnesses through visual touch screen displays, and retrieve vital information such as blood pressure, pulse rate and trauma scores.

Paramedics enter patient information and transmit it electronically via the Internet. When the patient reaches the hospital, medical personnel will know the type and quantity of medication that has been administered, and other pertinent details, as the electronic reporting system documents the date and time for each event.

Speed of billing has also increased to a single day as a result of the electronic reporting.  The system also helps eliminate errors by checking for required medical and billing codes, misspelled words and names and improper times.

“This system is going to help expedite billing and that will mean fewer headaches for residents in dealing with Medicare and their insurance companies,” said EMS Division Capt. Tony Harvey.