Paramedic Education and Training for the Management of Patients Presenting with Low-Acuity Clinical Conditions: A Scoping Review
Ambulance services around the world are increasingly attending to calls for non-emergency conditions. These lower-acuity conditions do not always require patients to be transported to the emergency department. Consequently, over the past two decades, ambulance services have implemented strategies to...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2024-01-01
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| Series: | Healthcare |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2227-9032/12/2/176 |
| _version_ | 1797343788543246336 |
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| author | Anthony Carnicelli Anne-Marie M. Williams Dale G. Edwards |
| author_facet | Anthony Carnicelli Anne-Marie M. Williams Dale G. Edwards |
| author_sort | Anthony Carnicelli |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Ambulance services around the world are increasingly attending to calls for non-emergency conditions. These lower-acuity conditions do not always require patients to be transported to the emergency department. Consequently, over the past two decades, ambulance services have implemented strategies to support paramedics in diverting non-urgent patients to alternative care pathways. However, assessing and managing low-acuity conditions can be challenging for paramedics, especially when education and training has traditionally focussed on emergency care. This scoping review explores the education and training provided to paramedics on low-acuity clinical conditions and the use of alternative care pathways. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for Scoping Reviews was applied. The databases searched included Scopus, CINAHL, Embase, Emcare, and MEDLINE (PubMed). The search identified one-hundred sixty-six records, with a total of nine articles reviewed after the removal of duplicates and the screening process. The articles were diverse, with education and training ranging from university degrees for extended care practitioners to short in-service-based training for a suite of protocols or assessment tools. However, the literature addressing education and training on low-acuity conditions and alternative care pathways is limited, with the type and length of education programs appearing to influence practice. There is a need for further research to establish a low acuity education model. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-08T10:52:53Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-f91ea57f08ae43798407fc0e83efb05f |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2227-9032 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-08T10:52:53Z |
| publishDate | 2024-01-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Healthcare |
| spelling | doaj.art-f91ea57f08ae43798407fc0e83efb05f2024-01-26T16:45:55ZengMDPI AGHealthcare2227-90322024-01-0112217610.3390/healthcare12020176Paramedic Education and Training for the Management of Patients Presenting with Low-Acuity Clinical Conditions: A Scoping ReviewAnthony Carnicelli0Anne-Marie M. Williams1Dale G. Edwards2Tasmanian School of Medicine, College of Health and Medicine, University of Tasmania, Hobart, TAS 7000, AustraliaTasmanian School of Medicine, College of Health and Medicine, University of Tasmania, Hobart, TAS 7000, AustraliaTasmanian School of Medicine, College of Health and Medicine, University of Tasmania, Hobart, TAS 7000, AustraliaAmbulance services around the world are increasingly attending to calls for non-emergency conditions. These lower-acuity conditions do not always require patients to be transported to the emergency department. Consequently, over the past two decades, ambulance services have implemented strategies to support paramedics in diverting non-urgent patients to alternative care pathways. However, assessing and managing low-acuity conditions can be challenging for paramedics, especially when education and training has traditionally focussed on emergency care. This scoping review explores the education and training provided to paramedics on low-acuity clinical conditions and the use of alternative care pathways. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for Scoping Reviews was applied. The databases searched included Scopus, CINAHL, Embase, Emcare, and MEDLINE (PubMed). The search identified one-hundred sixty-six records, with a total of nine articles reviewed after the removal of duplicates and the screening process. The articles were diverse, with education and training ranging from university degrees for extended care practitioners to short in-service-based training for a suite of protocols or assessment tools. However, the literature addressing education and training on low-acuity conditions and alternative care pathways is limited, with the type and length of education programs appearing to influence practice. There is a need for further research to establish a low acuity education model.https://www.mdpi.com/2227-9032/12/2/176paramediceducationtraininglow acuityalternative pathways |
| spellingShingle | Anthony Carnicelli Anne-Marie M. Williams Dale G. Edwards Paramedic Education and Training for the Management of Patients Presenting with Low-Acuity Clinical Conditions: A Scoping Review Healthcare paramedic education training low acuity alternative pathways |
| title | Paramedic Education and Training for the Management of Patients Presenting with Low-Acuity Clinical Conditions: A Scoping Review |
| title_full | Paramedic Education and Training for the Management of Patients Presenting with Low-Acuity Clinical Conditions: A Scoping Review |
| title_fullStr | Paramedic Education and Training for the Management of Patients Presenting with Low-Acuity Clinical Conditions: A Scoping Review |
| title_full_unstemmed | Paramedic Education and Training for the Management of Patients Presenting with Low-Acuity Clinical Conditions: A Scoping Review |
| title_short | Paramedic Education and Training for the Management of Patients Presenting with Low-Acuity Clinical Conditions: A Scoping Review |
| title_sort | paramedic education and training for the management of patients presenting with low acuity clinical conditions a scoping review |
| topic | paramedic education training low acuity alternative pathways |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2227-9032/12/2/176 |
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