1/12/00
EMD Meeting
There was a meeting in Louisville for agencies and individuals interested in learning more about
emergency medical dispatch (EMD). The meeting was hosted by the Kentucky EMS Academy.
Information was presented by Mr. Bill Kinch of Medical Priority Consultants of Salt Lake City, Utah.
His company was started by Dr. Jeff Clawson over 20 years ago. This is one of
three major products available to assist dispatchers in prioritizing emergencies,
for providing "pre-arrival" dispatch instructions and quality assurance for dispatch.


Representatives were present from Louisville Fire Department, KY's Dispatcher Associations,
the KY State Police, the Kentucky EMS Academy and Eastern Kentucky University.



Overview:
The PMD program is taught over a 3-day (24 hour) class. Certification lasts for 2 years and
is renewable. Dispatchers receive emergency calls and use either flip-cards or a computer
program to make sure all of the pertinent questions are asked in the best order. Then
the cards direct the dispatcher to give appropriate instructions to the caller (e.g., how to
perform CPR, stop bleeding, etc.).
The group in attendance generally supported the idea of KY developing a standard for EMD.
The group wanted to have Mr. Kinch (or another representative of his company) to return
to KY and provide more information.
You can go to their website at:
http://www.medicalpriority.com/



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