LAUSR

Background: Pediatric patients with complex medical needs have suffered poor outcomes in prehospital and emergency department settings due to under prepared emergency care providers, a lack of accurate information, and delayed access to tertiary care. Patient guardians lack confidence in local EMS and community emergency departments (ED). Emergency Medical Service (EMS) education fails to address the needs of this unique population. Ensuring safety of patients with technology dependence and medical complexity is challenging especially in areas of high crime and in rural setting where home nursing can be difficult to staff. Death and neurological devastation has occurred in the emergency setting due to failure to address tracheostomy tube decannulation and obstruction. Failure to recognize impending respiratory failure in patients with atypical baseline findings, failure to recognize or treat adrenal crisis, inappropriate use of air transport, and EMS discomfort resulting in unnecessary transport …