Responsibilities of an EMS PECC
| Recommended Qualifications | Responsibilities |
|---|---|
| A clinical provider (physician, nurse, physician assistant, or nurse practitioner) with experience in EMS medicine and who works in an ED with active clinical practice in pediatric emergency medicine or a paramedic with some experience in pediatric prehospital or pediatric emergency medicine | Education |
| Strong interest in and desire to improve pediatric emergency care within the EMS system | To enhance pediatric proficiency for all EMS providers by facilitating both initial and continuing pediatric education for all providers |
| Experience in emergency medical care of children as demonstrated by training, clinical experience, and/or focused continuing education | To verify and promote EMS provider competency in providing pediatric emergency care through periodic training and evaluation of both cognitive and psychomotor competencies |
| Maintenance of competency in pediatric emergency care | To provide resuscitation skills training that includes concepts related to both trauma and medical care for neonates through adolescents |
| Provider may already be working within the EMS system | To promote opportunities for additional pediatric emergency care education and advancement within the EMS organization including, where available, collaboration with academic institutions |
| Clinical care | |
| To actively provide pediatric-based input in the development and revision of EMS protocols | |
| To assess compliance with pediatric emergency care protocols and policies | |
| To observe and measure the quality of pediatric emergency care | |
| To equip the EMS agency to care for all children through the availability of pediatric-sized equipment and supplies, including medications required to treat common conditions in children | |
| To integrate pediatric needs into EMS disaster and emergency preparedness plans | |
| To serve as a liaison between hospitals, the local community, and EMS to establish local destination determination guidelines that ensure that pediatric patients are transported to appropriate regional facilities on the basis of the patient’s clinical needs | |
| Research and QI | |
| To oversee pediatric QI, patient safety, injury and illness prevention, and clinical care initiatives | |
| To identify potential sources of funding for pediatric EMS research at local, state, or federal levels | |
| To integrate pediatric-specific quality metrics into the EMS agency that are either based on the national EMS Compass Initiative or are evidence based | |
| To establish a mechanism for electronic data collection that captures pediatric-relevant information in accordance with the most recent version of the NEMSIS data dictionary | |
| To analyze system efficacy and cost-effectiveness with respect to pediatric patient outcomes | |
| To identify local pediatric public health and operational issues in need of scientific evaluation and provide leadership to develop pediatric EMS research |