Submitted by PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center
Multiple emergency medical services (EMS) agencies serving Clark County were on hand at PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center Wednesday August 16 to demonstrate Clark County’s new Pulsara system, a smartphone-based communications tool that streamlines and accelerates care for patients suffering heart attack or stroke.
“PeaceHealth Southwest is the first hospital in the western United States to deploy this excellent technology,” said Louise Jenkins, MSN, manager of the PeaceHealth Southwest’s stroke program. “For a patient suffering a stroke, lack of blood flow can cause the death of two million brain cells per minute. Every second counts. The beauty of Pulsara is not only its speed, but also its simplicity. Any EMS crew with a smartphone or tablet can use it, and we’re grateful that our local EMS teams are collaborating with us to implement this in our community.”
Pulsara Demonstration
EMS representatives from AMR, North Country EMS, and the Camas-Washougal Fire Department demonstrated the use of Pulsara. With the tap of a smartphone button, a paramedic treating a heart attack or stroke patient instantly notifies everyone on the PeaceHealth Southwest care team that they are on their way in with a critical patient. While in transit, the paramedic team can enter additional patient information – such as the patient’s vital signs, ECGs, photos of injuries – and Pulsara will instantly update every member of the hospital’s care team.
Speed and Security
The speed of Pulsara gives the hospital team precious additional time to prepare to administer care. Beyond speed and accuracy, the Pulsara system also enhances protection of sensitive patient information, something not possible using existing cell phone, fax, or two-way radio technology. All information shared via Pulsara is safe and secure.
Wednesday’s Pulsara demonstration included a walk-through demonstration of Pulsara in action, along with remarks from EMS and trauma team members.
About PeaceHealth Southwest
The region’s health care leader and steward for 155 years, PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center is a community-owned, not-for-profit, 450-bed, medical institution located in Vancouver, Washington. Repeatedly recognized nationally as a 100 Top Hospital, PeaceHealth Southwest provides a full range of outpatient and inpatient diagnostic, medical, and surgical services to Clark County residents. PeaceHealth Southwest is also one of Clark County’s largest employers with 3,400 employees and 600 active medical staff members that help support dozens of medical specialty services and programs, including cancer, heart, emergency, trauma, neuro-musculoskeletal, family birth, and primary care. For more information visit the PeaceHealth website.
