EUROCALL

Dispatch time intervals for responding to an emergency call: are we losing the window of opportunity?

What is this project about?

The total time to connect to a Emergency Medical Communication Centre (TT-EMCC) may be relevant in situations such as cardiac arrest, where outcome is critically time-dependent . EUROCALL investigated TT-EMCC and its components in 21 EMCCs from 11 countries.

Main findings:

  • There are wide regional differences for TT-EMCC between and within countries.
  • The TT-EMCC was significantly shorter when the EMCC was reached directly (1-step procedure) as compared to a 2-step procedure i.e. 112 or the local number was reached first, and was connected to the EMCC after triage.

Appropriate authorities should make every effort possible to shorten the time to reach medical dispatch.

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