EMS Workforce Webinar- Phase 1 Results
Webinars to discuss the results of Phase 1 of the study were held in November/December 2017. The slides from the Webinar and a recording of the December 4th Webinar are available here.
INTRODUCTION
The Georgia EMS Workforce Study is the first study to look into the employment status of all licensed EMS personnel in Georgia. Phase 1 of the study involved gathering personnel rosters from as many EMS Agencies in Georgia as possible, and comparing the listed medics to the list of licensed EMS personnel in Georgia. This comparison allowed us to gain a better understanding of the makeup of the prehospital workforce in Georgia.
Please read the purpose of the study below, or click on the tabs above to view the data that has been collected as part of Phase 1 of the study.
PURPOSE
EMS currently stands in the middle of an intersection with multiple options for continued directions of travel. From a traditional perspective, our state should maintain adequate numbers of licensed providers to staff ambulances who currently serve their communities in a “usual and customary” role. However, EMS providers are becoming more integrated with the overall health care system as their skillset, portability, and comfort with technology is being recognized as a way to improve access to healthcare. Hospital CEOs have recognized the value in partnering with EMS to provide services designed to prevent unnecessary transports to emergency departments, reduce readmissions, and/or better manage patients with chronic health care needs in their own homes. This has resulted in an increased interest in a non-traditional use of EMS personnel and a desire to create programs that will use EMS as an extension of primary care, especially in rural areas with limited health care resources. In addition to this, more job opportunities are now available in specialty areas such as emergency departments, cardiac catheterization laboratories, urgent care centers, cardiac rehabilitation centers, etc., as facility administrators have recognized the qualifications and skillset of those who hold an EMS license.
The opportunities for emergency medical services to expand their service lines and EMS providers to work in non-traditional environments has created some concern that we may soon face a significant workforce shortage.
The State Office of Rural Health is a strong supporter of EMS and closely monitors changes in health care that have had, or will have, an impact on emergency medical services. Recognizing the need to secure methods of payment for non-traditional services provided by EMS, SORH is actively engaged in communication with stakeholders to identify opportunities to expand EMS billing for services other than transport.
Through the Rural Hospital Stabilization Program initiative, SORH is also supporting multiple grant funded projects that include the non-traditional use of EMS. These collaborative projects are bringing hospital leaders, clinic and skilled nursing facility leaders, mental health professionals, primary care physicians, and EMS directors together into patient-centered partnerships that have not been formed in the past. A primary anticipated outcome of these projects is a sustainability plan that can be replicated in rural Georgia. For this reason, SORH has a vested interest in supporting the EMS Workforce Study to determine if the goals of current SORH projects could, inadvertently, have a negative impact on EMS.”