More than 50,000 EMS agencies and fire departments across the United States provide pre-hospital medical care every day, but no national data currently exist about the physician medical directors who provide the clinical oversight that ensures safe and effective patient care.
The National Association of EMS Physicians (NAEMSP®) is conducting the first national EMS Physician Medical Directors Workforce Assessment in the United States. All physician medical directors for EMS and air medical services, 911/Emergency Medical Dispatch centers, fire services, and law enforcement departments are encouraged to complete this anonymous survey to help create a comprehensive picture of pre-hospital physician medical leadership. The results will help NAEMSP®, national EMS organizations, fire-based EMS, and state EMS offices identify physician employment trends, address training and professional needs, and inform policy and advocacy efforts in support of all prehospital medical directors.
“Thousands of physician EMS Medical Directors currently provide EMS system oversight to ensure high-quality, safe and effective patient care across the country,” says NAEMSP® President Michael Levy, M.D. FAEMS, FACEP, FACP. “It’s important that we get an accurate picture of physician medical directors’ professional needs so we can do our best to address them.”
Jon R. Krohmer, MD, FACEP, FAEMS, director of NHTSA’s Office of EMS, notes: “The role of the medical director is key in ensuring effective pre-hospital patient care. More data about the many aspects of medical direction will help NAEMSP, the NHTSA Office of EMS, and our Federal partner agencies better engage with the physicians who guide first responder and EMS clinician patient interactions by ground, air medical, law enforcement, and 911 professionals.”
The anonymous survey will take approximately 10 minutes to complete and will close on October 4, 2021. Results of the EMS Medical Directors Workforce Assessment will be shared by NAEMSP.