Research and Data Gathering

REMSTTAC supports and is closely monitoring two research and data gathering initiatives since both will have an impact on rural EMS and trauma systems. The first of these is the National EMS Information Systems (NEMSIS) project. The fulfillment of the vision of this project will, for the first time, create a uniform database across local EMS agencies, regions and states. This project, which is funded by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration of the U.S. Department of Transportation and other federal agency partners marks one of the most important milestones in data collection and research potential in the history of EMS. A technical assistance center has been established to support the continued deployment and success of NEMSIS. The NEMSIS TA center can be reached at http://www.nemsis.org.

The North Central EMS Institute is taking the lead on the second important initiative which is a national benchmarking process for EMS agencies. The findings and ongoing refinement of the systems measures will help position EMS agencies well as “pay for performance” begins to infiltrate prehospital reimbursement. Information pertaining to this important effort and an invitation to participate can be found at http://emsoutcomes.ncemsi.org/.