When did you begin researching issues related to the profession? Unofficially, I began many years before becoming official. Officially speaking, I have been a researcher since 2017. In my role, research enabled me to revamp, customize, launch, and optimize process improvement initiatives and programs to maximize operational performance and enhance customer service. What started you along the research and process improvement path? I took a new role within my organization in 2017, which requires me to research many aspects of not...
Where do you work? Madison County Fire Department Communications, Huntsville, AL, USA. As manager, I oversee operations for 14 full-time employees; handle all policy development, training program development, and quality assurance/quality improvement program oversight; and am a liaison with 16 volunteer fire chiefs and other public safety officials. What are the parts of your job that connect with research? I regularly analyze data in decision-making in all fields identified above. My recent research project published in AEDR...
Research Spotlight highlights a study that might be of interest to our readers. An interview with one or more of the study's authors also provides a more personal, behind-the-scenes understanding of how and why research is done. In this issue, we're highlighting a study done by Michelle Lilly, Ph.D., and Kim Turner, which examines how duty-related factors impact stress and mental/physical health outcomes...
It didn't take much time for Jeff Clawson, M.D., to connect the dots between Marc Gay's contributions to resuscitation science and the Dispatch Life Support (DSL) tools central to the International Academies of Emergency Dispatch® (IAED™) Protocols. That was more than 25 years ago, and Marc's involvement since 1992 has included several leadership positions, culminating this year with his nomination as chair of the IAED Council of Research. It hasn't been a hard sell on either side. "Let's face it," Marc said, "this guy named Jeff Clawson revolutionized the world...
Michelle Haynes currently serves as the EMD Quality Performance Improvement Coordinator for Weld County Regional Communications Center in Greeley, Colorado. She has worked in communications for almost 19 years. During this time, she has worked in several roles, including dispatcher, Certified Training Officer, EMD-Q, and member of the IAED ED-Q Council of Standards. She is a certified EMD Mentor and uses the skills she’s learned throughout her career to help dispatchers improve. By using her experience and expertise she can give them the tools and education that is vital to their success.
Patrick Clark currently serves as the Regional Transport Allocation Center Captain for Monongalia EMS in Morgantown, West Virginia. His team oversees all non-emergent transports for their two local Health Systems along with other facilities within the area. He has worked in EMS for the last 18 years. During this time, he has worked in several roles, including ground and air services along with Critical Care Transport. Along with EMS, he has also worked as a telecommunicator at a 911 system that served a large metropolitan area.
Dr. Chris Olola is the Director of Biomedical Informatics and Research at the Academics, Research & Communications (ARC) Department of the International Academies of Emergency Dispatch (IAED).
Jerry Overton
President of the International Academies of Emergency Dispatch® (IAED™), member of the Board of Trustees, and chair of IAED’s Institutional Review Board (IRB)...
Q1. What drew you into research involving stress? The inspiration for this research stemmed from a question that an EMD, one of the authors of the study, asked me. As she finished her shift, she asked, “Have you ever wonder if we make more mistakes in evaluating emergency calls when we work for longer hours? Because in my opinion…” Starting with that question, we planned and developed the study, involving all the Telecommunication Centers in our region [Liguria]. Q2. Your recommendations...
What is your advice for selecting the correct Emergency Communication Nurse System™ (ECNS™) symptom and injury-based protocol when the patient complains of several symptoms and/or injuries? Choosing the most concerning symptom that the patient has is achieved by keeping the ABCD concepts in mind (A= Airway, B= Breathing, C= Circulation, and D = Deficit in level of consciousness). If a symptom could cause a problem in any of the ABCD areas, the nurse should pick that symptom most likely to result in the compromise...
