Abstract
Background: Emergency medical services (EMS) play a crucial role in providing life-saving care to those involved in traffic accidents. However, delayed transport times can have a significant impact on patient outcomes. This study examines EMS transport times after motor vehicle accidents in the state of Florida and characterizes risk factors for delays.
Methods: The EMS Tracking and Reporting System (EMSTARS) database compiled by the Florida Department of Health was used to collect data on every EMS response to a motor vehicle accident in the state of Florida from 2010-2019. The outcome of interest was total transport time between the EMS unit being notified and the patient arriving at the destination. Any transport time exceeding one hour was considered to be delayed.
Results: There were a total of 269,841 cases that met criteria for inclusion. The average transport time overall was 34 minutes, with 5.1% being delayed over one hour. Transport times were longer on average (48 vs 33 minutes) and much more likely to be delayed longer than one hour in rural counties compared to urban ones (26.6 vs 3.2%, p<.001). Urban EMS agencies were more likely to attribute delays to turnaround, while rural agencies more often encountered delays on the scene or in transport. EMS units in rural counties were more likely to use advanced therapies (Intubations, placing IVs, etc). There was some variation in the percentage of transport delays when looking at time of day and day of week, with the highest risk being in the early morning and on the weekend.
Conclusions: There is significant temporospatial variation concerning EMS transport times after traffic accidents in Florida. Regional variation is likely unavoidable, but assessing the differing reasons for delay can help optimize EMS response across the state. This data also suggests that Florida EMS units in rural counties are appropriately more likely to utilize various life saving measures given the longer transport times.