Department
Emergency Services
Requested Action (Identify appropriate Action or Motion, purpose, cost, timeframe, etc.)
title
Request approval of a Memorandum of Understanding between Fulton County and the Emory Clinic, Inc. (Atlanta, GA) for a Medical Director to provide Administrative and Supervisory Services for the Emergency Medical Dispatch (EMD) Program for the Department of Emergency Services in the amount of $40,000.00 annually. Effective upon BOC approval through December 31, 2025, with three (3) renewal options ending December 31, 2028.
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Requirement for Board Action (Cite specific Board policy, statute or code requirement)
O.C.G.A § 36-10-1 requires any contract entered into by the County shall be forwarded to the Board of Commissioners for approval
Strategic Priority Area related to this item (If yes, note strategic priority area below)
Justice and Safety
Commission Districts Affected
All Districts ☒
District 1 ☐
District 2 ☐
District 3 ☐
District 4 ☐
District 5 ☐
District 6 ☐
Is this a purchasing item?
No
Summary & Background (First sentence includes Agency recommendation. Provide an executive summary of the action that gives an overview of the relevant details for the item.)
Request approval to enter into an agreement with the Emory Clinic, Inc. The American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP) believes that Emergency Medical Services (EMS) is a delegated practice of medicine and responsibility for the medical care of the patient begins with the initial request for care. The Emergency Medical Dispatch (EMD) program is an integral and critical component of the EMS system.
An EMD program requires the active involvement of EMS physician medical directors. The role of the physician medical director of an EMD program is:
• To approve the medical component of the dispatch protocols, including mechanisms to determine call priority and configuration of response, and appropriate pre-arrival instructions;
• To routinely review dispatch program performance and maintain active involvement in quality improvement (QI) activities;
• To have access to dispatch recordings for review of quality of patient care issues;
• To have the authority to recommend or make appropriate changes to protocol or personnel;
• To provide oversight for the ongoing education, training, and medical care provided by emergency medical dispatchers.
The physician medical director’s qualifications should include:
• Knowledge of current EMS scope of practice and legislation relating to 911 and dispatch functions;
• Education or training, knowledge, and experience in emergency care delivery and medical direction of EMS systems.
The Department of Emergency Services operates Fulton County’s Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP) which cross functional manages all calls for public safety services (Police, Fire, EMS, Animal Control). All personnel within the PSAP are cross-trained in the call-taking process, emergency medical dispatch (EMD) procedures and dispatching of resources.
Fulton County’s EMD program employs a system of medical questioning to assess the caller’s actual emergency, gain additional information, and/or offer basic medical care intervention instructions over the telephone, called “pre-arrival instructions; (e.g., bleeding control, cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR). This is accomplished via the utilization of a finite list of common chief complaints, each having associated predetermined questions. Answers to these questions ultimately dictate the resources sent to the scene and how those resources will travel (nonemergency driving or use of lights and sirens).
In order for the Department of Emergency Services to operate their EMD program, it is mandated that a licensed EMS physician medical director administer the program.
The Board of Commissioners at their meeting on June 20, 2018 (Item #18-0429), approved the Medical Director agreement with the Emory Clinic.