International Journal of Emergency Services: Volume 11 Issue 2

Editorial

Paresh Wankhade, Attila Hertelendy

Mental health patterns during COVID-19 in emergency medical services (EMS)

Sílvia Monteiro Fonseca, Sara Faria, Sónia Cunha, Márcio Silva, M. Joaquina Ramos, Guilherme Azevedo, Rui Campos, António Ruão Barbosa, Cristina Queirós

This study aims to explore patterns of Emergency Medical Services (EMS) personnel's mental health, regarding their levels of anxiety, depression, stress, COVID-19 anxiety…

At the front of the front-line: Ontario paramedics' experiences of occupational safety, risk and communication during the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic

Allyson Oliphant, Cathy Faulds, Samara Bengall, Elysée Nouvet

The study aimed to (1) determine on what bases paramedics in this context have defined themselves as feeling safe or at risk while serving on the front lines and (2) develop…

Can ambulance dispatch categories discriminate traffic incidents that do/do not require a lights and sirens response?

Ellen Ceklic, Hideo Tohira, Judith Finn, Deon Brink, Paul Bailey, Austin Whiteside, Elizabeth Brown, Rudolph Brits, Stephen Ball

Traffic incidents vary considerably in their severity, and the dispatch categories assigned during emergency ambulance calls aim to identify those incidents in greatest need of a…

How ambulance commanders manage a mass casualty incident

Alan Slater

Mass casualty incidents are characterised by an immediate, unforeseen and unquantifiable surge in demand for ambulance services which soon becomes apparent and will exceed any…

Exploring the structure and characteristics of the Anglo-American paramedic system in developed countries: a scoping review

Timothy Makrides, Linda Ross, Cameron Gosling, Joseph Acker, Peter O'Meara

This study aims to map and examine the existing evidence to provide an overview of what is known about the structure and characteristics of the Anglo-American paramedic system in…

Development and validation of moral distress scale in pre-hospital emergency service providers

Mojtaba Jafari, Abbas Ebadi, Hamid Reza Khankeh, Sadat Seyed Bagher Maddah, MohammadAli Hosseini

The uniqueness of the pre-hospital setting and the need for quick decision-making confronts pre-hospital emergency personnel with various moral conflicts that can lead to moral…

Dispatch information affects diagnosis in paramedics: an experimental study of applied dual-process theory

Toby Keene, Kristen Pammer, Bill Lord, Carol Shipp

Previous research has shown that paramedics form intuitive impressions based on limited “pre-arrival” dispatch information and this subsequently affects their diagnosis. However…

Evaluating the effectiveness of the fatigue and shift working risk management strategy for UK home office police forces: a pilot study

Lois James, Stephen James, Ian Hesketh

To evaluate the effectiveness of a fatigue-management training and sleep health promotion intervention in a sample of officers from UK Home Office Police Forces.

“The problem hasn't changed, but you're no longer left to deal with it on your own” – the role of informal peer support in helping firefighters cope with critical incidents

Karin Dangermond, Ricardo Weewer, Joachim Duyndam, Anja Machielse

How firefighters cope with critical incidents is partly influenced by the culture of the fire brigade. The purpose of this study is to better understand how informal peer support…

Time-efficiency factors in road tunnel rescue as perceived by Swedish operative personnel – an interview study

Johan Hylander, Britt-Inger Saveman, Ulf Björnstig, Lina Gyllencreutz, Anton Westman

Major incidents in road tunnels remain a collaborative challenge for the emergency services (fire and rescue service, police and ambulance), emergency dispatch centres (EDCs) and…

An exploration of alcohol and drug related fire injuries

Mark Taylor, Deb Appleton, John Fielding, Gary Oakford

The study examines alcohol and drug related accidental dwelling fire injuries during 2006–2016 in Merseyside in England.

The effects of empowerment at multiple leadership levels in the fire service: a moderated mediation model

David Huntsman, Alex Greer, Haley Murphy, Xiangyu (Dale) Li

While uncertainty during emergency response operations necessitates adaptive performance, emergency response organizations, such as the fire service, tend to constrain adaptive…

Coping strategies and social support are associated with post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms in Saudi paramedics

Khalid Alshahrani, Judith Johnson, Daryl B. O’Connor

Three main objectives of this study were as follows: (1) To estimate the prevalence rate of post-traumatic stress disordered (PTSD) symptoms among Saudi paramedics, (2) To…