Bookmark & ShareManaging Early Defibrillation
It is very simple. The administrative overhead is light. Each agency needs to develop:
- Dispatch protocols which set a high priority on possible cardiac-related medical calls
- Patient treatment protocols. Your medical director will help you put these in place. They are not complex. They simply outline the AED operating instructions.
- Inspection procedures to assure that the AEDs are tested regularly, maintained properly and are carried with spare batteries, spare pads and spare data cards
- Quality assurance and reporting procedures to insure that patient care remains the highest priority and that response times remain low
This sounds more difficult than it is. Once this work is done, little additional effort is required. The majority of the administrative overhead in Rochester is related to spreading the word to other agencies and encouraging them to implement early defibrillation services.