NEMSAC | Meeting August 9-10
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Tag: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA)
NHTSA’s Office of EMS Contributes to New Study Analyzing Suicide Among EMS and 911
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NEMSAC | Private and Fire-based EMS: Join the National EMS Advisory Council
Interested in Applying for NEMSAC?
Please contact the American Ambulance Association at info@ambulance.org.
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NEMSAC | Draft Letters Regarding DOT Efforts in Post-Crash Care
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Webinar 7/21 | How 988, Crisis Response, and EMS Can Improve Community Care
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NEMSIS 2021 Public Dataset Now Available for Research
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NHTSA’s Office of EMS Thanks You for Your Service
The Office of EMS (OEMS) at the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is celebrating our nation’s dedicated EMS clinicians during National EMS Week, May 15-21, 2022. We would like to thank you for your commitment to providing high-quality care and compassion to your patients. Your work makes your communities safer and healthier every day.
Please take a moment to watch this video to hear a special message from OEMS Director, Gam Wijetunge, expressing his heartfelt gratitude for EMS clinicians nationwide.
This year’s EMS Week theme is “Rising to the Challenge,” addressing the courage and perseverance EMS clinicians demonstrate every day. Despite the obstacles, EMS clinicians remain dedicated to treating patients in the face of a continued pandemic response while handling the typical challenges of working in EMS.
Take advantage of this opportunity to educate others about all that you and your fellow clinicians do, like Office of EMS EMS Specialist, Kate Elkins, featured on an episode of the Everything is Public Health podcast, scheduled for release on May 19, 2022.
From all of us here at the Office of EMS, NHTSA, and the Department of Transportation: Thank you.
Deadline Approaches for Public Safety Input on Annual Grant Program
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NHTSA Names New 911 Program Coordinator
Please see the following statement from NHTSA announcing their newly named 911 Program Coordinator
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NEMSAC | National EMS Advisory Council Meeting Webcast March 2–3
The National EMS Advisory Council will be holding a virtual meeting on Wednesday and Thursday, March 2-3. Members of the public can register for the webcast here.
NEMSAC meets several times each year to discuss issues facing the EMS community and provide advice and recommendations regarding EMS to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration in the Department of Transportation and to the Federal Interagency Committee on EMS.
The agenda for each day includes time for NEMSAC subcommittee deliberations in the morning, with the webcast council meeting convening at 12:00 pm ET on Wednesday, March 2, 2022, and 1 pm ET on Thursday, March 3, 2022. Items on the council’s agenda include:
– FICEMS COVID-19 Response
– National Suicide Hotline Update
– Reviewing the Need for EMS and Obstetric Collaboration
– Rural, Tribal and Frontier EMS Challenges
– Improving Stroke Triage and Transport Protocols for EMS
– Public Comment
Individuals registered for the meeting interested in addressing the council during the public comment periods must submit their comments in writing to Clary Mole at clary.mole@dot.gov by 5pm ET on February 24, 2022.
This meeting will be open to the public. NHTSA is committed to provide equal access to this meeting for all program participants. Persons with disabilities in need of an accommodation should send your request to Clary Mole by phone at (202) 868-3275 or by email at Clary.Mole@DOT.gov no later than February 24, 2022. A sign language interpreter will be provided, and closed captioning services will be provided for this meeting through the WebEx virtual meeting platform.
National Emergency Medical Services Advisory Council Notice of Public Meeting This notice announces a meeting of the National Emergency Medical Services Advisory Council (NEMSAC).
National EMS Advisory Council Meeting Webcast Feb. 9-10
From EMS.gov on January 27, 2022
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NHTSA Names New Office of EMS Director
From NHTSA on January 13, 2022
Long-time OEMS Staff member assumes leadership role
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) today announced that Gamunu Wijetunge, NRP, will assume the role of Director of the Office of EMS effective January, 29, 2022.
Gamunu “Gam” Wijetunge, who has worked within NHTSA’s Office of EMS for more than 20 years, is also a volunteer paramedic, fire captain and the president
of a volunteer rescue squad in Maryland. He will assume the director role — which is also responsible for the National 911 Program housed within the Office of EMS — following the retirement of Jon Krohmer, M.D., FACEP, FAEMS.
“For many years, Gam has been a leader within NHTSA’s Office of EMS, an
advocate for clinicians, and a trusted colleague for both Federal partners and Fire/EMS organizations,” said Dr. Krohmer. “His commitment to collaboration within the EMS community may be best illustrated through his stewardship of EMS Agenda 2050, which sets a clear path for the continued improvement of people-centered EMS systems for the next 30 years.”
Throughout his tenure at NHTSA, Gam has played an integral collaborative role in the development of EMS systems nationwide. These include leading efforts to:
- Develop evidence-based guidelines and tackle EMS system improvement issues
- Address recruiting, retention, clinician safety and other EMS workforce topics
- Improve national EMS preparedness through coordination with other Federal agencies
- Facilitate consensus and collaboration within leadership and working groups of the Federal Interagency Committee on EMS (FICEMS).
“I am thrilled to continue the office’s collaborative work side-by-side with our Federal partners, EMS stakeholders nationwide, and my colleagues at NHTSA,” said Gam. “I look forward to continuing Jon’s good work to support state, regional and local EMS and 911 agencies as we strive to advance our people-centered EMS and 911 systems.”
Wijetunge has a Bachelors’ Degree in Emergency Health Services from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County and a Master of Public Management from the University of Maryland, College Park. He has several professional affiliations and has been recognized repeatedly for outstanding performance and federal service, including most recently the HHS/ASPR COVID-19 Pandemic Civilian Service Medal in 2021.
Congratulations to Gamunu Wijetunge, the newly-appointed Director of @NHTSAgov's Office of #EMS! We look forward to continued collaboration to ensure #mobilehealthcare excellence for all Americans. #SupportEMS #NotJustaRide #AlwaysOpen pic.twitter.com/qHO3REmlEk
— AmericanAmbulanceAsc (@amerambassoc) January 13, 2022
Jan 5 | EMS360: Fatigue Risk Management in EMS Webtool Demo
Fatigue Risk Management in EMS: Project Summary and Webtool Demo
EMS360: Fatigue Risk Management in EMS Webtool Demo
Fatigue Risk Management in EMS: Project Summary and Webtool Demo
NHTSA Publishes New National EMS Education Standards
Revised Standards outline minimum competencies for entry-level EMS clinicians to perform their roles
After a community-wide, collaborative effort, the newly updated National EMS Education Standards are now available. The Standards outline the critical topics to be covered in the initial education of EMS clinicians, based on the latest version of the National EMS Scope of Practice Model as well as recent research and best practices. The document defines the competencies, clinical behaviors, and judgments required of EMS personnel to perform their roles. They provide a high-level outline of those topics, and do not replace the need to develop a curriculum, nor are they intended to limit EMS educational programs from going beyond the Standards to meet student or community needs.
The National EMS Education Standards were first published in 2009, and this marks the first major revision. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and the Health Resources and Services Administration, Maternal and Child Health Bureau’s EMS for Children Program funded the effort through a process led by the National Association of EMS Educators.
“EMS clinicians are the most critical resource in our nation’s EMS systems, and education is the foundation upon which those clinicians are created,” said Dr. Jon Krohmer, director of the NHTSA Office of EMS. “These newly released National EMS Education Standards, created by the EMS community, will help educators and education content providers continue to create competent, compassionate clinicians dedicated to providing people-centered, evidence-based care to their communities.”
Visit EMS.gov to learn more about the revised 2021 National EMS Education Standards, download the Standards themselves, and find frequently asked questions about the project.
NHTSA Office of EMS Annual Update
The NHTSA Office of EMS continues to work with our partners to advance EMS systems and support EMS clinicians serving on the front lines. Together, we are striving to achieve the vision of a people-centered EMS system put forth in EMS Agenda 2050.
Thank you to all who have helped make great strides in 2021, even in the face of some of the greatest challenges we’ve ever faced as a profession—and a country. This year’s NHTSA Office of EMS Annual Update highlights some of the work happening at the national level, including:
- Newly revised National EMS Education Standards
- Evidence-based guidelines to support safe and effective patient care
- Advances in EMS data collection and analysis
- The COVID-19 response
Click here to read our summary of 2021 accomplishments and review the status of ongoing projects. Most important, look for ways that you can get involved in national efforts to improve EMS and create a better future for our profession, our patients and our communities.
EMS.gov | NEMSAC Members Appointed
From EMS.gov on October 6
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EMS.gov | Template Protocol for EMS Administration of Monoclonal Antibodies
From EMS.gov on August 27, 2021
To assist EMS agencies in planning, the NHTSA Office of EMS and HHS Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response have developed a template protocol for state EMS offices and EMS Medical Directors to use to assist in these programs. Some states have created blanket state-level authorizations for EMS administration; some states will still require provider authorization prior to administration. Please follow local protocols and regulations. This template is only designed to facilitate the development of those local protocols as needed. Please contact the NHTSA Office of EMS with any questions.
EMS.gov | Information About COVID-19 for EMS Systems and Clinicians
From EMS.gov
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NHTSA | Office of EMS Director Jon Krohmer, MD, to Retire
NHTSA Office of EMS Director Jon Krohmer, MD, to Retire Later this Year
After 15 years of federal service, including the last five leading the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Office of EMS, Jon Krohmer, MD, will be retiring in November.
During his tenure as director, Dr. Krohmer and the NHTSA Office of EMS team oversaw a number of milestones for the profession, including the creation of EMS Agenda 2050; major revisions to the National EMS Scope of Practice Model and the National EMS Education Standards; and improvements in the collection and use of EMS data through the expansion of the National EMS Information System. Soon after the onset of the coronavirus pandemic, Dr. Krohmer was tapped to lead the prehospital/911 team as part of the Federal Healthcare Resilience Task Force.
“Dr. Krohmer’s tenure at NHTSA—especially over the last year and a half as EMS clinicians have faced one of the greatest public health challenges in generations—has been marked by real advances for the profession, thanks in no small part to his leadership,” said Nanda Srinivasan, NHTSA’s associate administrator for research and program development. “He was a true advocate at the federal level for state, tribal and local EMS systems, EMS clinicians, and patients.”
Prior to joining NHTSA, Dr. Krohmer had decades of experience as a local EMS medical director, initially in his home state of Michigan. His EMS career began as an EMT with a volunteer rescue squad. Like many EMS professionals, he was inspired by the television show Emergency! and by the emergence of the relatively new field of emergency medicine. He entered medical school at the University of Michigan knowing he wanted to make EMS his career. After becoming involved in EMS at the state and national level, he also served as president of the National Association of EMS Physicians from 1998 to 2000. In 2006, he came to Washington to serve as the first deputy chief medical officer for the Department of Homeland Security Office of Health Affairs and served in several other DHS roles before joining NHTSA in 2016.
“Working alongside EMS clinicians and the people who support them at local, state and national levels has been a privilege and a heck of a lot of fun,” said Dr. Krohmer. “The decision to leave NHTSA was difficult, but it’s made easier knowing that the team in the Office of EMS, our colleagues throughout the federal government, and leaders of EMS at state and local levels are committed to improving the lives of people in their communities and will continue to advance EMS systems everywhere.”
NHTSA will launch a national search for a new director for the Office of EMS.
“The example set by Dr. Krohmer will serve as a great model for the next director,” said Associate Administrator Srinivasan, “and the team of dedicated public servants at the Office of EMS has the experience and expertise to ensure a smooth transition.”
