Paramedics Gain In-ambulance Access to Patient Records

Health

Published Wednesday, November 18, 2009

The first system in Canada to provide paramedics with instant access to MedicAlert health records has been successfully launched in Nova Scotia. Within hours of the system going live, a paramedic in Halifax accessed potentially life-saving information en route to the hospital with a patient.

Quotes

Nova Scotia paramedics are highly trained individuals who do an exceptional job. This system provides them with information that will help them do their job even better and I am proud that we are once again leading the way as the first province to have such a system in place.Maureen MacDonald, Health Minister

The first of its kind in the world, this innovative solution gives paramedics early knowledge to make informed treatment and care decisions at the most crucial moments.Scott Campbell, president and CEO, Medusa Medical Technologies Inc.

One in five Canadians has a condition that should be known in an emergency situation. This innovative program will let medical professionals hear Nova Scotians when they cannot speak for themselves.Robert Ridge, president and CEO, MedicAlert

This is an excellent example of the type of innovative systems evolving from electronic health records. The MedicAlert Access-En Route system is helping patients in crisis receive the right treatment sooner, resulting in better patient outcomes.Richard Alvarez, CEO of Canada Health Infoway

Quick Facts

  • MedicAlert Access-En Route in Nova Scotia allows paramedics to access the MedicAlert emergency health record from ambulances and include it as part of the electronic patient care record.
  • The Siren ePCR software, developed by Medusa Medical Technologies, is used by paramedics to chart the care they provide to patients in the field. Paramedics can now call up a patient's MedicAlert record, to obtain critical data such as allergy, medication, and physician information.
  • The system will help create more comprehensive and integrated information sharing between ambulatory care, emergency rooms, primary care physicians, and other sources of patient service.
  • The model can also be used to provide other health-care professionals, such as emergency room staff, with timely and secure access to MedicAlert information.
  • There are more than 43,500 Nova Scotians enrolled with MedicAlert, a national charity. They are people of all ages with chronic medical conditions such as diabetes, hypertension, asthma and allergies, medical implants and special needs.
  • The MedicAlert Access-En Route in Nova Scotia project will cost about $625,000. The Department of Health will provide about $12,000 a year for ongoing support of the system. Canada Health Infoway is contributing $475,000, and MedicAlert is investing $150,000.
  • The Canadian MedicAlert Foundation is the largest membership-based registered charity in Canada with more than one million members.
  • Canada Health Infoway is an independent, not-for-profit organization funded by the federal government. It jointly invests with every province and territory to accelerate the development and adoption of electronic health record projects in Canada.

Learn More

Media Contacts

Brett Loney
Department of Health
902-424-3034
E-mail:
donalee Moulton
Canadian MedicAlert Foundation
902-445-9600
E-mail:
Dan Strasbourg
Canada Health Infoway
416-595-3424
E-mail:

Images

The device that allows in-ambulance access to records of patients with MedicAlert bracelets sits on a table as Health Minister Maureen MacDonald speaks to Don Sweete of Canada Health Infoway in the background.
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Health Minister Maureen MacDonald listens to speakers at a news conference at the launch of Canada's first In-ambulance access to patients records.
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Health Minister Maureen MacDonald gets a demonstration from Mark Turner, senior operations paramedic, at the launch of the first system in Canada to give paramedics instant access to a patient's MedicAlert information.
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A man wearing a MedicAlert bracelet tries the device that allows in-ambulance access to MedicAlert patient records.
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Videos

Video of Press Conference

Audio

Health Minister Maureen MacDonald says this is the first system in the country that gives paramedicas instant access to medic alert health records.
Ms. MacDonald says one paramedic turned to the system shortly after it was available.
Robert Ridge, president and CEO of MedicAlert, says this is just the starting point for the new system.