WASHINGTON, D.C.— The EMS Agenda 2050 National Implementation Forum marks the end of creating a vision for the future of EMS and the beginning of implementing changes to turn the EMS Agenda 2050 document into reality. The National Implementation Forum was conducted at the Department of Transportation building in Washington, D.C., and livestreamed on YouTube, which can be watched at the end of this article.
Mike Taigman, prolific EMS author, educator and quality improvement guide, moderated the first panel of speakers, which featured four members of the technical expert panel. Those speakers, tasked with facilitating the process, including regional meetings, and reading hundreds of pages public comment, were:
- Derek Bergsten, MPA.
- William Leggio, EdD, NRP.
- Kevin Munjal, MD, MPH, MSCR.
- Kyra Neeley King, MEd, EMT-P.
Memorable quotes:
The implementation forum is to “start laying the foundation on how we take advantage of the document, to implement changes to turn the vision in the document into reality.”
—Jon Krohmer, MD, NHTSA Office of EMS Director
“Input from thousands of people was received from all corners of the EMS world.”
—Mike Taigman, MA
The EMS Agenda 2050 “is not meant to address today’s problems. It’s meant to be a vision for the future.”
—William Leggio, EdD, NRP
“We want everyone involved in EMS to use these guidelines in the EMS Agenda 2050 in your decision-making process to make every vision a reality. This is not the end, it’s the beginning.”
—Derek Bergsten, MPA
“By 2050, the setting where a patient receives care will have no impact on the quality of the care they receive.”
—Kevin Munjal, MD, MPH, MSCR
Top takeaways on making the EMS Agenda 2050 reality
The EMS Agenda 2050 document is in the final formal review process and NHTSA agency clearance. According to Jon Krohmer, M.D., the document is to be released in the “relatively near future.”
Here are the top takeaways from the implementation forum panel hosted by Taigman.
1. People centered focus
The people centered focus of the EMS Agenda 2050 broadly captures the interests and needs of providers, patients and patient’s families. The document’s people-centered vision also imagines a future where prevention and chronic disease monitoring takes an increased importance.
After Taigman’s panel discussion, Bill Atkinson, Ph.D., keynote speaker, described how important it is to have EMS providers who are people centered, educated, dedicated to the mission and willing to work across boundaries. Those are the types of people who will turn the vision into reality.
Atkinson’s presentation starts a little more than an hour into the session in the livestream video.
Every day, from his time as a street paramedic, to hospital CEO, Atkinson has asked himself, “What did we do for the people we are here to serve?” This question is how he stayed people centered throughout his career.
2. 6 guiding principles
The EMS Agenda 2050 is comprised of six guiding principles. Neeley King and Munjal read and explained these principles. Those guiding principles are, EMS of the future will be:
- Inherently safe and effective.
- Integrated and seamless with healthcare.
- Reliable and prepared.
- Socially equitable.
- Sustainable and efficient.
- Adaptable innovative.
The final principle builds off the previous five and encourages EMS to quickly and effectively evolve to new community needs and challenges.
3. Turning vision to reality
Moving from vision to reality is a shared responsibility of all EMS leaders, field providers and educators. The technical expert panel believes the guiding principles can immediately be integrated into organizations’ hiring practices, training programs, patient care protocols and cultural change initiatives.
The guiding principles, though based on predicting future technology, were written to be agnostic to the future direction of technology. Making the EMS Agenda 2050 a reality isn’t contingent on either the development of new technology or the diffusion of any one existing technology.
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EMS Agenda 2050 – Public Release – Session 1
EMS Agenda 2050 – Public Release – Session 2
