• Health Policy and Management
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• v.2 no.2
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• pp.152-178
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• 1992

This study focuses on making recommendations for the improvement of poor emergency medical services or EMS in Korea. Problems of the current EMS system is widely reviewed. As an alternative of the current system, a franchises system is introduced to EMS. A feasibility study of the new system is carried out as follows. 1) The current EMS system shows such problem as; - Inadequacy of emergency medical fee schedule, - Shortage of emergency medical resources, - Concentration of emergency medical facilities in metropolitan area, - Unestablishment of training program for emergency personnel, - Inappropriateness of patients' behvaviro pattern in emergency care system. 2) Recommendations for the improvement of EMS are as follows: - Well organized communication and transportation system needs to be established by utilizing all the availabl EMS is to be devised for the provision of appropriate emergency care. - A franchises system can be widly adopted so that private organizations are willing to establish a free standing emergency center. - Emergency care fee schedule of the franchises system needs to be appropriate for the system to provide high standard medical services.

• Journal of Korean Clinical Health Science
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• v.1 no.1
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• pp.35-45
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• 2013

Purpose. Based on the comparison and analysis with those of United States, the aim of this research is to find the problems in current management, operation and future directions of emergency medical service (EMS) fund in S. Korea and to provide basic resources and appropriate measures to make a right decision in policies for EMS fund. Methods. Data from Ministry of Health and Welfare and other various sources during 1995 to 2012 were collected and analyzed. Results. From our analyses, several problems are identified in EMS fund operation. In brief, problems discerned are as follows. First, whereas the purpose and direction of EMS fund operations in United States are highlighted and focused on pre-hospital EMS system and associated infrastructures which need to be constructed, those of S. Korea are emphasized mainly on the in-hospital EMS system so far. Second, on the contrary to the fact that the EMS funds in United States are tuned to pre-hospital EMS system to provide prompt and efficient emergency care at the emergency scene of pre-hospital stage and to achieve the development, design, planning and demonstration projects for pre-hospital EMS systems, up to date, our investment of EMS funds demonstrated an excess biased inclination toward the construction of in-hospital EMS system, which is far from the realization of constructive and vital pre-hospital infrastructures. Third, while emergency medical technician is important and principal body in the management of emergency medical funds in United States, so far, no EMS funds in S. Korea existed for EMTs including the job condition, improved treatment and working environment for them. Conclusion. In conclusion, we strongly suggest that the problems pointed out must be revised and corrected. Current usage of EMS fund needs to be redirected predominatly to pre-hospital EMS system. Otherwise, unless current management and investment of emergency medical funds in S. Korea are applied and used for the vital necessities and demands of EMTs, public EMS units and private EMS units as well as related units in pre-hospital EMS system as in the cases of United States, in our consideration, they must be suspended or abolished.

• The Korean Journal of Emergency Medical Services
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• v.7 no.1
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• pp.135-146
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• 2003

The purpose of this study was to improve EMS-System in Korea through the research in EMS-System of advanced country. The response time is defined as the interval from the time of call receipt to the time of scene arrival. The important factor was to shorten moving distance of ambulance. It should be considered to accomplish this factor that the vehicle must be increased and the convenient location chosen for optimizing of service area. The transport of emergency patients carried out almost by 119 Emergency Medical Service but out of all the employees at 119 EMS only 11.3% have own qualified EMT degree. They should be employed more and more specially at 119 EMS for a superior level of emergency medical care for civilian. In America, EMT can take care of emergency patients following the order from medical Director at the scene of accident. But in Germany, prehospital care was emphasized from the beginning and, in those days, a medical doctor was sent for treatment of emergency patients at the scene, the so-called a Rendezvous system. Hierby this study makes the suggestion to improve the EMS-System, it is effective to use the medical Director system in America and furthermore a Rendezvous system in Germany. The functional integratin and unification of the report system as well as enough personal and equipmental elements saved together invaluable lives.

• The Korean Journal of Emergency Medical Services
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• v.28 no.1
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• pp.63-76
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• 2024

Purpose: To analyze trends related to demography and EMS and to provide supporting data for the appropriate deployment of EMS providers. Methods: In this cross-sectional study, data on patients transported by 119 EMS, demographics, and EMS factors were collected using the Korean Statistical Information Service (KOSIS) and the National Fire Agency annual report from 2017 to 2021. Results: During the study period, the total number of patients and those with severe disorders transported via 119 EMS showed an increasing trend. The total fertility rate and population during the same period tended to decrease, and the population density and number of households increased; however, there was a disparity between regions. The main demographic factors affecting the number of patients transported were population density and total fertility rate, while the main EMS factors were the number of ambulances and provision of emergency medical information services(hospital guidance, pharmacy information, and first aid guidance). Conclusion: From the perspective of EMS providers' force deployment, it is necessary to consider population density, population, number of households, total fertility rate, and number of emergency medical institutions and to strengthen the role of diverting the use of 119 EMS by minor patients by providing emergency medical information.

• Clinical and Experimental Emergency Medicine
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• v.5 no.4
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• pp.272-277
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• 2018

Objective While the effect of typhoons on emergency medicine has been evaluated, data are scarce on their effects on the emergency medical service (EMS). This study evaluated the effect of typhoons on EMS patients and performance. Methods The study period was January 2010 to December 2012. Meteorological data regarding typhoons were provided by the Korean Meteorological Administration. EMS data were retrieved from the EMS database of the national emergency management agency. The database includes ambulance run sheets, which contain clinical and operational data. In this case-crossover study, the cases and controls were EMS calls on the day of typhoon warnings and calls one week prior to the typhoon warnings, respectively. Results During the study period, 11 typhoons affected Korea. A total of 14,521 cases were selected for analysis. Overall, there were no obvious differences between the case and control groups. However, there were statistically significant differences in age, place, and time requests. There were fewer patients between 0 and 15 years of age (P=0.01) and more unconscious patients (P=0.01) in the case group. The EMS operational performance, as measured by the times elapsed between call to start, call to field, and call to hospital did not differ significantly. There was also no significant difference in the time from hospital arrival between the cases (28.67, standard deviation 16.37) and controls (28.97, standard deviation 28.91) (P=0.39). Conclusion Typhoons did not significantly affect the EMS system in this study. Further study is necessary to understand the reasons for this finding.

• The Korean Journal of Emergency Medical Services
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• v.9 no.2
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• pp.101-110
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• 2005

In Korea, EMS Fund Operation seems to move the opposite direction to right way. The most initial EMS fund was consumed loan for some emergency patients without any particular results. Since 2002, the use of EMS fund also has shown a tendency to shift one side. By the results, it was 44.3% to support emergency medical centers, so called hospital EMS system and 28.4% to purchase ambulances and helicopters, and 1.6% to operate Central Medical Center, prehospital base in the EMS fund consumed in 2004. It was never supported for the environmental improvement and development of universities, colleges, and private EMS units having the primary responsibilities. The initial EMS fund using should be used for prehospital base, e.g., prehospital staffs, communications, and facilities and balanced development between public and private EMS units than any other fund using.

• The Korean Journal of Emergency Medical Services
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• v.13 no.3
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• pp.121-131
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• 2009

The purpose of EMS is to provide emergency patients with prompt and suitable emergency treatments therefore it saves their lives and makes them recover fast to return to normal. The purpose of correctional administration is to return inmates to society as sound citizens after their service by providing various correctional education, reformational programs, vocational training and etc. In this way, the aim of correctional administration and EMS is like mutual agreement by their returning to society safely. Therefore this study makes some propositions like the followings for the safety between many inmates who can have physical injury and exposure to diseases caused by particularity of subculture within correctional institutions and the staffs who work for them. It is said about efficient pre-hospital EMS through various causes of emergency situation in the correctional institution, system, manpower, facility, equipments and problems and so on. 1. Recruit the first-rate EMT(emergency medical technician) as central role of pre-hospital EMS according to each correctional institution and working terms. 2. Equip specialized transference system with symptom of patients and purpose of transference. 3. Emergency medical equipments and first-aid medicines should be equipped for field and ambulance. 4. Educate correctional officers as first responders and inmates within correctional institutions about systematic emergency treatment.

• Korean Security Journal
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• no.3
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• pp.336-384
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• 2000

The current function of 119EMS(Emergency Medical Service) is simply to transport patients to hospitals due to the lack of medical personnel and medical equipments. In order to mark the current 119EMS system, that is to say, more many medical technician and paramedics, medical equipments supplementation, korean EMS communication system simplification and the re-arrangement of the existing fire organization, and so on. Also so various problems involving 119EMS should be solved political and financial support and the change in people's attitude toward the public fire service.

• The Korean Journal of Emergency Medical Services
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• v.3 no.1
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• pp.33-42
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• 1999

The purposes of this study which was conducted by studying the literature on Emergency Medical Dispatch System are to provide some developmental policies of quality management, pre-arrival instructions, priority dispatch protocols, training program for the dispatchers(Emergency Medical Dispatchers or EMDs) in Korea and to promote understanding emergency medical dispatching. The conclusions from this summarized as follows; (1) It is confirmed that there has been little study on the Emergency Medical Dispatch System in Korea, because for the first time, the real Emergency Medical Services were introduced into Korea in 1994, and the importance of the Emergency Medical Dispatch System has not been realized. (2) Only some squads are using a set of dispatch protocols, others aren't. (3) In spite of trying to introduce a new set of dispatch protocols, it isn't the priority dispatch system using a complete set of dispatch protocols which has key questions, pre-arrival instructions, mode & configuration based on patient assessment. (4) The EMS is unable to promote the service capacity by using quality management, because there is no medical control on the emergency medical dispatching and the EMDs. (5) There are no medical directors in the communications center who are in charge of the medical control to detect problems derived from the EMS and to solve them. (6) There are no systematic training program for the EMDs who are taking charge of dispatching. (7) Having a deep relation to the elements of the EMS, the emergency medical dispatching is subject to restriction of those elements.

• The Journal of Information Systems
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• v.19 no.3
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• pp.263-278
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• 2010

Emergency Medical Service(EMS) requires a system that supports the communication between emergency medical technicians (EMT)s and the doctor in the emergency department. Because the rapid triage and on-site treatment of patients need doctor's medical advice. However, a system to assist the doctor assign for medical advice does not exist in Korea. This paper suggests a medical advice support system that focuses on appropriate doctor assign and real-time communication among the ambulance, the Emergency Medical Information Center (EMIC), and the doctor using an agent system. We expect that the system can help to solve the problems affecting prehospital EMS and improve its general quality.