Ochsner Baton Rouge has reached a two-way patient data-sharing agreement with East Baton Rouge Parish Emergency Medical Services. The first arrangement of its kind in the Capital region, this data-sharing model benefits both EMS and emergency department staff at Ochsner Medical Center – Baton Rouge.
Under the agreement, EMS personnel share treatment information electronically when delivering patients to the OMC-Baton Rouge emergency department. This quickly provides ED physicians and medical providers with accurate data on medications and procedures that patients receive prior to arrival.
“Sometimes it’s very chaotic when EMS arrives with a critical patient,” said Nathan Freeman, MD, medical director of emergency medicine, Ochsner Baton Rouge. “We’re doing everything we can, as quickly as we can, to save lives. Having a complete record of what was done in the field adds another valuable layer of information while we’re trying to solve a complex medical problem.”
In addition, the agreement gives EMS personnel an opportunity to compare their field diagnoses with those reached by Ochsner ED physicians. East Baton Rouge EMS Medical Director Dan Godbee, MD, said exchanging the information is an invaluable training tool. It also provides a major psychological benefit for EMS personnel.
“Our responders care about the people they’re trying to help, and they want to do the best job possible for every second that it takes to transport the patient to the hospital,” Godbee said. “The vast majority of times, they never know what ultimately happened to the patient. So, this agreement makes it possible to understand the physician’s diagnosis and the patient’s outcome, which is very meaningful for our team.”