Life-saving machines on wish list for EMTs
Friday, February 2, 2007
These days, Lyon County’s ambulance service wants some help getting to the heart of things.
It’s been abut 20 years since the Emergency Medical Service got its first Thumper, a machine that gives cardiopulmonary resuscitation to restart a patient’s heart. Unlike a human paramedic, a Thumper never tires out. It can last as long as its batteries do, so long as someone keeps its piston centered on the patient’s chest.
But times have changed. So have medical standards. And these days, the ambulance service wants to replace its Thumpers with new AutoPulse devices capable of 100 compressions a minute. By contrast, the Thumpers set a pace of about 60 to 80 compressions.
“We had looked at the AutoPulse before, but there wasn’t any proof that showed it was that much better than a Thumper,” said Deputy Fire Chief Bob Binder, the head of the local EMS unit. “Now we have the science.”
A human can keep up with that 100 compressions per minute, Binder said, but not at full efficiency. One study found that a paramedic at that pace might take three to five minutes to feel tired, but their efforts at CPR would only be at 25 percent effectiveness after the first minute.
“That’s under controlled conditions,” Binder said. “That’s not in the back of a moving ambulance going down the street. So a mechanical device is going to deliver consistent compressions regardless of what might be going on around the patient. That’s the beauty of it.”
Unlike a Thumper, an AutoPulse has a strap that is fastened around a patient’s chest. It presses the whole chest at once, rather than needing to be centered on the sternum.
It’s more compact, more efficient — and more expensive. An individual AutoPulse runs a little over $16,000, while a Thumper might run $6,000 to $6,500. Some budget shuffling allowed the EMS to get its first AutoPulse in December. That machine has already been used on four patients — one each in Emporia, Reading, Olpe and Admire.
That still leaves three Thumpers in service. Even with a slight price break from the company, it’s still going to cost around $46,000 to replace them. And doing it will likely take some city-county cooperation.
The Lyon County Commission took the first step last week, approving $60,000 for equipment for the ambulance service. That would be enough, if the AutoPulses were the only thing on the list. But the fire department needs a new extricator to help free people trapped in vehicle wrecks. That takes a higher priority and about $46,000.
The Emporia City Commission has not yet made a decision on the fire and ambulance requests, which also include a pair of thermal imaging cameras, used by firefighters in smoky conditions. Right now, Binder said, the fact that the city and county are working on an agreement has to be a positive step.
“When you hear a county commissioner say ‘This us versus them attitude’s gotta stop,’ that’s good to hear,” Binder said. “It makes people like me smile.”
Even with the devices, speed still counts. If a first responder can get to a cardiac patient within three to four minutes, Binder said, a shock from a defibrillator can usually bring the person back around.
“Otherwise, it’s got to be good, effective CPR that gets the heart going,” Binder said. “And the AutoPulse is the best way to accomplish that.”