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Physician field response: a national survey
D C Cone1, G C Wydro, C M Mininger
1Department of Emergency Medicine, MCP Hahnemann School of Medicine, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA. david.cone@yale.edu
Prehospital Emergency Care
|July 15, 2000
Summary
Physician field response (PFR) units are largely unavailable in U.S. emergency medical services (EMS) systems, with significant variability in the scope of practice and training for those that do exist. No national standardization was found.
Area of Science:
- Emergency Medicine
- Public Health
- Medical Systems Analysis
Background:
- Physician field response (PFR) units represent a critical component of advanced emergency medical services (EMS).
- Assessing the current landscape of PFR units is essential for understanding their integration and effectiveness within U.S. EMS systems.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the availability, scope of practice, and training requirements of physician field response (PFR) units across emergency medical services (EMS) in the United States.
- To identify any existing trends or standardization in PFR unit operations.
Main Methods:
- A mail survey was distributed to physician medical directors of EMS systems in the 125 most populous U.S. cities.
- Follow-up mailings and phone calls were used to increase response rates, with surveys sent to multiple services within cities if applicable.
Main Results:
- 71% of surveyed cities reported no PFR capability; of the 29% with PFR, most utilized an on-call system rather than a dedicated unit.
- Reported scopes of practice included physician triage (94%) and blood administration (97%), with less common procedures like tube thoracostomy (40%).
- Training requirements were highly variable, with significant percentages of PFR teams lacking formal training in areas such as incident command systems (47%) and hazardous materials (41%).
Conclusions:
- There is substantial variability in the availability, training, and scope of practice for physician field response units nationwide.
- The study found no discernible standardization or clear trends in the implementation or operation of PFR units across U.S. EMS systems.