What is the agenda for 2050?
The first regional meeting for The EMS Agenda 2050 to discuss the Straw Man Document created by a panel of subject matter experts (SME’s) was held on September 26, 2017 in Silver Spring, MD. The EMS Agenda 2050 is very public and intended to be as inclusive as possible, literally anyone can provide comment on the Straw Man Document or the process by e-mailing This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or using the link at the bottom of this article. The author, Chesapeake Paramedic Alan Perry, participated in the meeting and brings forward his observations.
The keynote speaker was Ricardo Martinez, MD, former administrator for the National Highway Traffic Safety Admininstration and one of the authors of the 1996 EMS Agenda for the Future. To paraphrase his comments, he asserts that EMS is fragmented and suffers from the ill effects of isolation and insulation. He notes that EMS is deployed locally while fire is deployed nationally, that EMS should be declared an essential public service, and that we need the think exponentially not incrementally. He offered effective inspiration.
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Medication administration is an essential skill for EMS providers but it is also one of the riskier procedures because of potential adverse effects due to errors. One of the best ways to avoid mistakes is by using the "six rights" of medication administration. The six rights are easy to remember.
Diabetic care practices are often overlooked in EMS. Blood glucose testing can expose people to bloodborne viruses such as Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C Virus, and HIV when testing supplies and materials are used on multiple patients. Outbreaks of Hepatitis B infection associated with unsafe diabetes care have been identified with increasing regularity particularly is settings where individuals require assistance with monitoring their blood glucose levels and glucometers are used on multiple patients. EMS is one of these settings.
