Revolution in emergency services: community paramedics relieve the burden on emergency rooms!

Revolution in emergency services: community paramedics relieve the burden on emergency rooms!

In recent years, emergency care in Lower Saxony has changed fundamentally thanks to the model project “Community Emergency Paramedics” (GNFS). Since 2019, the Oldenburger Land control center and the Vechta control center have been working on restructuring the use of emergency services in order to respond more efficiently to the needs of the population. The project mobilizes experienced emergency medical technicians equipped with a minivan and critical medical supplies to respond to less urgent emergencies more quickly, thereby reducing the burden on emergency rooms, such as uol.de reported.

The scientific support of the project is carried out by Insa Seeger, a healthcare researcher. Seeger has evaluated tens of thousands of mission logs collected since the GNFS was introduced. These analyzes show that in over 60% of patient visits there is no urgent need for care. In most cases, these are health problems that cannot be viewed as classic emergencies. A significant proportion of those seeking help have not previously consulted a doctor, indicating that the GNFS closes an important gap between outpatient care and classic emergency rescue.

Benefits for older patients

What is particularly noteworthy is that more than 50% of patients who use the GNFS are older than 65 years. This group benefits significantly from on-site services that include many medical interventions that previously fell under the purview of emergency care. A retrospective observational study showed that 55% of patients could be treated on site and only 38% required rescue equipment, according to data from ncbi.nlm.nih.gov emerges.

The GNFS address a wide range of concerns, including support with self-medication, advice and care for problems with urinary catheters. The latter is particularly popular with nursing home residents, where specific measures often have to be taken. Some of the care measures, such as catheter problems, were successfully carried out on site in 84.3% of the operations, which shows how important such a preventive and advisory service is.

Political debates and outlook

Despite the positive feedback from patients and the success of the model, the GNFS project is not yet part of standard care. This topic has sparked political debates in which people argue for the project to be made permanent in order to ensure needs-based supply without wasting resources. Seeger is increasingly being asked to serve as an expert in political committees to promote the implementation and future development of the project.

In summary, it can be said that the GNFS model not only represents an innovative solution to relieve the burden on emergency departments, but also makes a valuable contribution to the quality of care for older people. The results of the current study on the use and effects of the GNFS, which have yet to be published, could make a significant contribution to further optimizing emergency care in the region pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov sketched. The GNFS efforts are proving to be a step in the right direction for modern, needs-based healthcare.