EMS News Briefs from Mike McEvoy

EMS Coordinator Mike McEvoy, Ph.D., NRP, RN, CCRN
NYSAFC EMS Committee

News from the State EMS Council (SEMSCO)

This column will keep you up to date on news affecting EMS providers, educators, chiefs, and administrators. You’ll read about significant developments in EMS policy, regulations, and legislation here. Our current representation in practically every venue affecting EMS in New York allows us not only to know what’s happening, but to also have a voice in the process. We welcome submissions addressed to the NYSAFC EMS Committee by email or mail to the association office.

SEMSCO meetings resumed in-person schedules on July 19-20, 2022. RSVPs failed to raise a physician quorum, which canceled the Med Standards and SEMAC meetings. The July 20 SEMSCO meeting is archived here.

Finance reports their EMS Training Cost Survey Tool has been distributed. Please encourage your training programs to complete the (online) survey. Also, a revised workforce survey will be released later this year in an effort to update the very informative 2019 report.

Training and Education packed a very lengthy agenda into a little over an hour. Staff reported the CME portal is open and working well; all submissions should go there. Questions should be emailed to Gene Meyers, NOT put in the portal. Cards have been processed through June 2022. The most common issue with the portal is getting an application returned for failing to follow directions (who’d a thunk it?). 34 of the last 165 submissions met this ugly fate.

While horror stories abound regarding New York state exam issues with PSI (the testing contractor), only 1% of students actually have issues registering and taking their PSI exams. Should this be you or a friend, don’t bother calling PSI – email here. Lastly, from the staff report, Training Chief Jean Taylor plans to retire at the end of September of this year, leaving some big shoes (or sneakers, as it often is) to fill.

A complaint received by the Bureau regarding BLS use of an obstructed airway clearance device raised the age-old question of whether education, SEMAC, or SEMSCO endorses, approves, or otherwise specifies equipment items in protocol. The general consensus, previously opined, is that EMS equipment is authorized by agency medical directors. As this is clearly déjà vu all over again, this question will be forwarded to SEMAC for consideration in September. T&E recommends SEMAC develop a policy statement on authorization of medical equipment and devices.

SEMSCO meetings for the rest of the year will be at the Hilton Garden Inn in Troy, September 21-22 and December 6-7. There is a plan to announce all the dates for next year, hopefully before next year. This will hopefully help get quorums for meetings. Maybe.

About the Author:
Mike McEvoy, Ph.D., NRP, RN, CCRN is the EMS coordinator for Saratoga County, a paramedic supervisor and the CME coordinator for Clifton Park-Halfmoon Ambulance Corps, a firefighter and the chief medical officer for West Crescent Fire Department. He works in the Cardiac Surgical ICU at Albany Medical Center and chairs the hospital resuscitation committee. Appointed to the State EMS Council in 2018, McEvoy previously served from 2002-2014 and was Council chair in 2005. He currently chairs the IAFC EMS Section. For those worried about monkeypox, Mike advises that there is no need to go bananas. Contact Mike McEvoy here.