Community Paramedicine Applied in a Rural Community

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Emergency Medicine
• Health Services Research

Background:

• Frequent emergency department (ED) utilization by patients with chronic conditions poses a significant burden on healthcare systems.
• Community paramedicine (CP) programs aim to address this by providing targeted care to high-risk populations.
• Abbeville County Emergency Management Services (ACEMS) implemented a CP program for patients with hypertension, diabetes, chronic heart failure, asthma, and COPD.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the impact of the ACEMS community paramedicine (CP) program on emergency department (ED) visit frequency.
• To assess the effect of the CP program on patient health outcomes in Abbeville County.

Main Methods:

• A pre/posttest study with a comparison group design was employed.
• The study included 193 participants (68 enrollees, 125 comparisons) from Abbeville County, South Carolina.
• Data were collected from Abbeville Area Medical Center (AAMC) and ACEMS records.

Main Results:

• Hypertensive patients experienced significant reductions in systolic (7.2 mmHg) and diastolic (4.0 mmHg) blood pressure.
• Diabetic patients showed a significant decrease in blood glucose levels (33.7 mmol/L).
• CP participants had a 58.7% decrease in ED visits and a 68.8% decrease in inpatient visits, while the comparison group saw increases.

Conclusions:

• The community paramedicine (CP) program effectively improved participant health and reduced healthcare utilization.
• CP participants demonstrated better health outcomes, reduced need for intensive care, and lowered community healthcare expenses.
• The program's success highlights the value of community paramedicine in managing chronic diseases and optimizing healthcare resource allocation.