Bringing in an AEDs on BLS Calls

EpiEMS

EpiEMS

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Do you bring an AED into the house, assisted living facility, etc. on every BLS call?
I usually only bring it in for respiratory distress, unknowns, and "unconscious" calls.
 
EpiEMS said:
Do you bring an AED into the house, assisted living facility, etc. on every BLS call?
I usually only bring it in for respiratory distress, unknowns, and "unconscious" calls.
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Check your county or department policy for that. I know the department I work for reuqires us to bring our Zoll (my unit is BLS so we use AED function) to every call.
 
Every "emergency" call got the 02/trauma bag and AED when I worked BLS in Boston. It became company policy after a while but I did it anyway since it's not that big and easily fit on the net at the head when we took someone.

Here med bag, airway bag, and monitor on every call as well, unless the paramedic is insistent on not bringing it. Already I have left the airway bag in truck after being told to, needed to give O2. Left the narcs and suction in truck after being told to, needed both.
 
That's one of the interesting components about my system. We bring in two large Stat Packs and the LP15 in on every call. This is because we're only technically dispatched to "ALS" calls though, and not having an ambulance of our own means every piece of ALS equipment must come in on our own backs. Anticipate needing more than 1.5 liters of NS? Better bring the saline tub too. Maybe a cardiac arrest or trending that way? Better grab the Lucas plus Ventilator plus maybe cooler for induced hypothermia if you're feeling optimistic. How about RSI? Grab the other ventilator. I could go on...
 
The monitor/defibrillator is taken on almost every job; every ambulance is equipped with either an LP12 or a Phillips Heartstart MRx which are replacing the LP12s.

There are a number of vehicles that do a very low volume of responses and they are having a manual defibrillator removed and replaced with an AED and a small Capnocheck SpO2/ETCO2 monitor. Examples of this are the DOM/ROM and Clinical Support.

Road crash is an example where the monitor/defibrillator would not be taken; at least initially.
 
No. Not any more than we bring the suction.
 
IFTs..no way. If we are first on scene of a 911 we bring a jump bag (Airway/O2/Basic Trauma) and the AED. If fire's already on scene we don't bother with that stuff and bring just the gurney since they have all of that stuff anyway.

Why?
Can't tell you how many times those "Sick Person" calls turned out to be something completely different. Dispatch C/Cs are just plain wrong too many times to ignore. I'd rather bring it and not need it than need it and not have it. Doesn't weight that much anyway.
 
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No, AED only comes in on calls that are suspected cardiac, or unresponsive where we beat the cops

In a moment of brilliance, the township administers the AED program, so all ambulances have a commonality with every patrol car. The cops usually get on scene first and they bring in their AED and O2 bag.
 
EpiEMS said:
Do you bring an AED into the house, assisted living facility, etc. on every BLS call?
I usually only bring it in for respiratory distress, unknowns, and "unconscious" calls.
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As per our SOPs - defib comes in on every call here.
 
(Queue Grandpa Simpson voice...) Way back in my day...

When I was a BLS provider, we always took something in with us on every call, IFT or not. That something was our O2 bag and a BP cuff, unless we knew we'd be needing something specific for that call. On all emergency runs (we did tons of them), we'd take in our jump kit as well - every time.

When I worked as a ALS provider, I always took the jump kit/O2 & airway bag, and monitor with us on every call. Even the BLS ones. Why? Simple. I never knew if I'd need to change IV tubing or solutions, insert a (rarely worked right) dial-a-flow into the line, or do whatever else was necessary... like put the patient on my monitor, because sometimes we'd be dispatched to an IFT as a BLS transfer only to have it become an ALS one because the fluid ordered wasn't in the BLS scope and that needed to stay infusing.

My feeling is that BLS should always bring in at least O2 and an AED on every call and add equipment from there as needed.
 
Company policy is oxygen, jump kit and carrying device (typically stairchair) are brought on on all calls.

AED is at crews discretion. typically only brought in on ALS calls (in which case the carrying device is switched to a Reeves).
 
In most cases, the BLS people here don't even bring the stretcher to the house. Getting them to carry an AED in on every call would be impossible. :)
 
DEmedic said:
In most cases, the BLS people here don't even bring the stretcher to the house. Getting them to carry an AED in on every call would be impossible. :)
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I have noticed one crew bringing in their LUCAS on routine CP calls, without the stretcher of course.
 
9-1-1 calls get the jumpbag and thats it, If its a not breathing the monitor and airway bag, if its unresponsive but breathing the airway bag goes but not the monitor on most

Our jump bag has BVM, IV start kit, Mini drug bag with first 4 rounds of cardiac drugs, narcan, D-50, etc...everything you need to work a code for the first 10-15 minutes, fix a diabetic emergency, correct a narcotic overdose, etc...
 
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BLS units here don't carry AEDs....
 
NPO said:
BLS units here don't carry AEDs....
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What County? Not uncommon considering the state makes provider agencies jump through all sorts of hoops to become "AED Service Providers".
 
Chris07 said:
What County? Not uncommon considering the state makes provider agencies jump through all sorts of hoops to become "AED Service Providers".
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Correct. Most counties in CA. I just like the shock factor that people react to when I tell them we don't carry AEDs :)

It's also fun watching nurses freak out when I tell them we can't use pulse oximetry either.

I'm speaking of LA County of course. My unit has an AED however.

Also, non first-in 911 medics can't pace. Our monitors can do it, but county protocols don't allow it.
 
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NPO said:
Correct. Most counties in CA. I just like the shock factor that people react to when I tell them we don't carry AEDs :)

It's also fun watching nurses freak out when I tell them we can't use pulse oximetry either.

I'm speaking of LA County of course. My unit has an AED however.

Also, non first-in 911 medics can't pace. Our monitors can do it, but county protocols don't allow it.
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In LA, I believe the only private companies that carry AEDs are the ones that have 911 contracts. Other than that, no one else does.
 
As far as BLS levels, that's correct.
 
We just started carrying AEDs on our BLS units around a year ago (it was optional for my county until recently).

Our BLS units do not respond to 911 calls (there are rare cases). If we are picking someone up from home or a SNF we bring in our response bag, gurney with O2 attached. If its a call from the hospital or an urgent care we don't bring in the response bag.

SpO2 is a BLS skill here however it is an optional piece of equipment for us (meaning we don't carry them).
 
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