Identify an issue in EMS care that you believe needs to be studied.
Emergency medical workers are responsible for the saving of many lives because they are the first responders to all medical emergencies or disasters yet there is not much that is known about their injuries and illnesses. The issue that I believe should be studied is occupational injuries and illnesses among emergency medical workers. This is because the injuries they suffer are mostly work related and are probably as a result of interactions with their patients. Emergency services medical workers pit their lives on the line in order to save the lives of others and yet there are destitute awareness and information about their injuries and illnesses. This research projects seeks to share light on the type of injuries that EMS workers suffer during their occupations in their efforts to save other lives by the use of a qualitative analysis and findings by the use of existing literature and information on the topic.
Define the type of study you wish to do
This is a literature search paper that seeks to study the available information and publications about the occupational injuries and illnesses among EMS workers. Records on the EMS injuries and illnesses indicate that they encounter a lot of risks in their line of work which include coming into contact with highly infected patients facing the risk of contamination or being infected, handling of dangerous chemicals which may cause a lot of harm in not handled with care, and also in the transportation of the patients which also expose them to road or air related accidents. The EMS worker contributes to the highest number of both fatal and non-fatal injuries and illnesses (Utterback et al. 38). The EMS workers work long shifts and sometimes suffer from fatigue that also contribute to their injuries during work hours where they are likely to be involved in accidents. Despite the EMS workers being very crucial to the medical practice and the well-being of a country there is very little known information about their occupation and there is lack of adequate information describing the risks they are likely to suffer in their occupations.
Describe the study
This is a cohort study that focuses on a specific group which in this case is the EMS workers and their exposure to occupational hazards. In comparison to other field of practice EMS workers are more likely to suffer from occupation hazards and can at times contract highly contagious illnesses but the limited workforce in the EMS sector and limitation of available information have made it very difficult to understand the extent to which the workers likely suffer injuries and illnesses in their line of work (Maguire et al. 408). Also the EMS department have different dimensions of workers which range from volunteers in fire departments and rescue squads, paramedics, professional ambulance service workers, certified nurses and medical assistants including many more diversify the dimension of the workforce making research even more difficult and hard to reach conclusive results. Reports indicate that firefighters who perform EMS services in various parts of the world have are more likely to suffer from cardiac deaths due to smoke inhalation on their rescue missions and also suffer from other respiratory diseases. The EMS workers also suffer fatal illnesses especially stress and disorders from cumulative disturbing events while delivering the EMS services (Heick, Young and Peek-Asa 965).
Describe how you will share results of the study
After concluding this study on the grounds that the EMS workforce suffers from many illnesses and injuries ranging from emergency car accidents, violence and assault from aggressive patients, exposure, and infections from viral diseases emotional exhaustion including others and there is a need to understand the injuries of those who take care of the injured and, in this case, the EMS worker by extensive data collection not to mention that there is also a need for more research on the topic I will share my results through publishing of findings in peer-reviewed journals to help researchers in repeating the study and build on the study for more confirmed results.
Work Cited
Heick, Rebecca, Tracy Young, and Corinne Peek-Asa. 'Occupational Injuries Among Emergency
Medical Service Providers In The United States'. Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine 51.8 (2009): 963-968. Web.
Maguire, Brian J. et al. 'Occupational Injuries Among Emergency Medical Services Personnel'.
Prehospital Emergency Care 9.4 (2005): 405-411. Web.
Utterback, David F. et al. 'Occupational Injuries, Illnesses, And Fatalities Among Workers In
The Services Sector Industries'. Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine 54.1 (2012): 31-41. Web.
