Okaloosa County EMS Comprehensive Quality Assurance and Training Program

About the Program

Category: Health (Best in Category)

Year: 2015

In 2013, the Okaloosa County Emergency Medical Services was facing a crisis of medical mistakes and their consequences on the patients they affected as well as the credibility of the organization. Responders in the County EMS system relied on online training to maintain competency and quality assurance was based on less than objective performance measures and competence criteria. The resulting decline in medical competency was having an impact on patients and the department by virtue of liability claims. This situation prompted the County EMS Chief and Medical Directors to develop the Okaloosa County EMS Comprehensive Quality Assurance and Training Program. Local fire chiefs and hospital administrative personnel also participated in the effort. The plan fostered participation between local fire departments, hospitals, and EMS in the development and implementation of new quality standards, pre-hospital medical performance measures, resource and data sharing procedures, and a comprehensive training program that provided realistic classroom and skills lab training modules based on local treatment protocols rather than commercially available web-based programs. The result was objective and measurable improvement in all categories of clinical competency and a higher quality of care system wide.