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Vital Signs Records Omissions on Prehospital Patient Encounter Forms

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  28 June 2012

Robert L. Moss
Robert L. Moss*
Affiliation:
Office of Emergency Medical Services, Planning and Development Coordinator, Arizona Department of Health Services, Division of Emergency Medical Services, Phoenix, Ariz.
*
Arizona Department of Health Services/EMS, 100 West Clarendon, Suite 620, Phoenix, AZ 85013USA
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Abstract

Introduction:

A reported in-field, prospective evaluation of 227 prehospital patient assessments by advanced life support (ALS) emergency medical technicians (EMTs) found a frequent failure to measure vital signs. The objective of this retrospective review was to report the omission frequency of vital signs found in a centralized emergency medical services (EMS) data collection system.

Methods:

The EMS database contained information from 90,480 optically scanned, prehospital patient encounter forms. Each record identified EMT skill levels, response times, dispatch type, vital signs, medical and trauma information, treatment, and patient disposition. Records for 1989 and 1990 were collected from 92 rural EMS providers who responded to emergency medical and trauma events.

Results:

Of 90,480 emergency responses, 14,129 (15.6%) were false alarms, deceased, or canceled without vital patient contact. Valid encounters were documented for 76,351 (84.4%) patient contacts. Systolic blood pressure measurements were not recorded for 13,262 (17.4%) patients. Diastolic blood pressure was not recorded for 14,272 (18.7%) patients. A pulse record was not recorded for 12,125 (15.9%) patients. A ventilatory rate was absent in 12,958 (17.0%) patient records.

Conclusion:

This study found a frequent failure by non-metropolitan basic life support (BLS) and advanced life support (ALS) EMTs to record vital signs on prehospital emergency patient encounter forms. It supports a previous report of direct in-field observations of ALS EMTs failing to measure vital signs during patient assessment. The impact of vital sign omissions upon individual patient care can be assessed only by receiving medical control physicians. In the absence of effective emergency physician networking, the statewide magnitude of the problem among BLS and ALS EMTs has not been recognized as a system issue.

Keywords

assessmentdispatch typesemergency medical servicesemergency medical techniciansoptical scanvital signs
Type
Original Research
Information
Prehospital and Disaster Medicine , Volume 8 , Issue 1 , March 1993 , pp. 21 - 27
Copyright
Copyright © World Association for Disaster and Emergency Medicine 1993

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