Telematics in prehospital emergency care: the Hector Pilot of Crete

Emergency Medicine is considered the neglected specialty of contemporary medicine, although it is widely acknowledged that improvement in the outcome of the acutely and critically ill depends on its timely and effective management during the critical first hour [1], the so called "golden hour". The crucial question therefore is whether Telematics can affect this outcome and in particular how they can assist the existing models of Prehospital Emergency Medical Services (EMS) to meet this goal. The Hector Pilot of Crete tries to give a convincing answer to this question, taking into account the concept and some of the requirements of Emergency Medicine.