City of Paris Emergency Medical Service has received the American Heart Association’s Mission: Lifeline® EMS Gold achievement award for its commitment to offering rapid and research-based care to people experiencing the most severe form of heart attacks and strokes, ultimately saving lives.
“Paris EMS Paramedics and EMTs can begin patient treatment when they arrive and continue intervention during transport to the hospital,” Paris EMS Assistant Chief Jason Dyess said. “Driving a heart attack or stroke patient by private vehicle delays critical life-saving care.”
Mission: Lifeline EMS® is the American Heart Association’s national initiative to advance the system of care for patients with high-risk, time-sensitive disease states, such as severe heart attacks and strokes. The program helps reduce barriers to prompt treatment — starting from when 911 is called, to EMS transport and continuing through hospital treatment and discharge. Optimal care for heart attack and stroke patients takes coordination between the individual prehospital providers and healthcare systems.
“Arguably the most important link in the chains of survival for acute stroke and cardiovascular emergencies is emergency medical services and prehospital professionals,” said Edward Jauch, M.D., MS, MBA, chair of the department of research at the University of North Carolina Health Sciences at Mountain Area Health Center. “Early condition identification, stabilization and prehospital interventions, and initiation of actions within the regional systems of care provide patients with the best chance for receiving expedient definitive therapies leading to optimal outcomes and maximized quality of life.
“The American Heart Association Mission: Lifeline EMS awards are an important way to recognize the crucial roles and performances of EMS personnel in stroke and cardiac patients’ care.”
The Mission: Lifeline EMS achievement award focuses on agencies’ on-scene care, bringing to the forefront the collaboration and contributions to patient care for prehospital providers.
“Paris EMS is honored to be recognized by the American Heart Association for our dedication to providing optimal care for heart attack patients,” Paris Fire Chief Thomas McMonigle said. “Our Paris EMS crews train to apply The Mission:Lifeline proven knowledge and guidelines so patients have the best possible chance of survival.”
Paris EMS employs 27 full-time paramedics and more than a dozen part-time EMTs and paramedics. The service operates four MICU ambulances 24 hours a day and up to three ambulances for long-distance transfers. The service area covers more than 900 square miles and includes the City of Paris and all of Lamar County.
Mission: Lifeline EMS® recognition is the American Heart Association’s program that recognizes prehospital emergency agencies for their quality of care for heart attack and stroke patients. The recognition program focuses on transforming care quality by connecting all heart attack and stroke care components into a seamlessly integrated care system. Key tenets of these systems of care reinforce evidence-based guidelines and measure performance, identify gaps, and engage in quality improvement.
