PULSE Magazine | April 2020 Issue

ATCEMS Launches COVID-19 Dashboard and Introduces Clinical Consult Line

Dashboard provides daily data sets specific to Austin-Travis County EMS responses during COVID-19 event and the activity of their newly developed COVID Clinical Consult Line (CCCL)

Since the onset of the COVID-19 Pandemic here in Austin and Travis County, Austin- Travis County Emergency Medical Services has made multiple changes to better serve the public, assist the overall medical system, and protect our medics and public safety partners. One major addition to our operations was the development and implementation of our COVID-19 Clinical Consult Line (CCCL). This line is staffed around the clock by fifteen (15) ATCEMS Medics that have been specially trained and credentialed by the Office Of The Medical Director - City Of Austin-Travis County . This resource provides another layer of triage, direction, and guidance to our field medics and other regional Public Safety partners while they are responding to and/or on-scene of a COVID-19 suspected incident. Upon receipt of a call for help to our ATCEMS Communications Center from 9-1-1, our Communications Medics begin the initial triage and dispatch of our emergency response assets. Once it’s been determined that the incident is potentially COVID-19 related, a CCCL medic will be conferenced in on the call to provide further COVID-19 specific tri- age that may include the use of telemedicine. These specially trained medics further screen the 9-1-1 callers and provide alternate instructions and guidance to all involved parties…the caller, responding ATCEMS Medics and first responders. This can include a no transport directive. If no transport is determined to be the best course of action for the patient, the responders and the medical system, the patient will be provided the next best steps for their continuum of care which may include remaining at home. How this works:

We plan to provide the dashboard daily throughout our continued response and mitigation of this pandemic.

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