Defibrillators Cost $2.3M to replace
Of the 60,000 patients cared for by local paramedics in 2017, each one was assessed using one of 55 defibrillator/monitor units. But Essex-Windsor Emergency Medical Services Chief Bruce Krauter said those units have now reached the end of their expected life cycle and it will cost almost $2.3 million to replace them. “They’re not the defibrillators you see hanging on the wall at the shopping mall or the arena,” Krauter said. “These are diagnostic tools that take blood pressures ... 12-lead ECGs (electrocardiograms) like you get at your doctor’s office and they defibrillate. “You’ve got to understand these defibrillators (and monitors) are used on those 60,000 patient contacts we have each year. They are used on each and every one. They get a great deal of use,” he said. Defibrillators deliver a dose of electric current to the heart when needed during a cardiac arrest or to restore a normal heart rhythm. In a report that county council will deal with on Wednesday, Krauter has recommended the purchase of 60 new Physio Control Lifepak 15 defibrillator/monitors at a total cost of $2,296,671. The 55 units currently in use were purchased in 2012. Krauter’s recommendation is that EMS Surplus Canada be contracted to dispose of the units, with a $440,000 trade-in allowance coming back to the county.
Every ambulance, early response vehicle, district chief vehicle and the vulnerable patient navigator team vehicle is equipped with a defibrillator/monitor.
The new units are similar to the current models but with updated computer technology, Krauter said. They also come with more tools. “For example, carbon monoxide testing,” he said. “Current models don’t test for it.
“The new models have the ability to measure carbon monoxide in the blood so it’s another advancement tool that we have to better treat the patient.”
Patient data is automatically
They’re not the defibrillators you see hanging on the wall at the shopping mall or the arena.
transmitted to the patient records that paramedics are responsible for establishing on computer tablets carried in their vehicles. Krauter said this ensures the data entered is accurate.
The defibrillator/monitors can also transmit data directly to hospitals and directly to a physician so they can see “what we’re seeing out in the field before we even actually put them in the ambulance.” This allows the physician to make a quicker decision on the treatment path for that patient. Krauter said the tender document asked for a quote for the replacement of fire department defibrillators as well and once county council deals with the matter, he will share the information with both the City of Windsor and the six lower-tier municipalities that are part of the tiered medical response system.
“(We did that) to hopefully get a good price for the fire departments,” Krauter said.
Essex County Council meets at 7 p.m. at the Essex Civic Centre.