BR Med-Link connects Ambulances and ERs

http://www.govtech.com/dc/articles/627345

The city of Baton Rouge has equipped some of their EMS Ambulances with data and video links to local hospitals (called BR Med-Connect), enabling ER physicians to give treatment and diagnosis instructions to the paramedics before the patient ever reaches the hospital. While this system will not be used with every patient, for severe cases, this could greatly increase the ability for the patient to receive the proper treatment as soon as possible, especially before reaching the hospital. The data link takes advantage of the city’s wireless mesh network to transmit and receive data.

Use Case: A patient is reported to and picked up by Baton Rouge paramedics. Those who participate in the treatment of the patient (initially the EMTs, and then the ER doctors) want to give the best level of care possible. The high severity of the injury justifies the need to use the BR Med-Connect system. Doctors from the destination hospital’s ER view the patient, receive preliminary information from the paramedics while either on scene or en route to the hospital, and provide treatment instructions for the patient. The hospital can prepare for the patient’s arrival, receiving real time data and video of the patient, and altering and amending the treatment until the time the patient arrives at the hospital’s ER. The patient is transferred from the paramedics to the ER, and treatment continues without interruption.

Data standards for transmission of the patient’s vital signs, voice, and video from the ambulance are all network standard UDP, from my assumption that the stream is more important than an individual packet. From a medical side, the treatment course desired by the doctor can occur immediately, giving the patient a better chance for a speedier diagnosis and possibly a faster recovery. While the standards for EMT treatment are triage, this allows for more detailed treatment, like that which would be received if a doctor was performing a ride along in the ambulance.