Pfizer Study Suggests Vaccine Works Against Virus Variant
By LAURAN NEERGAARD AP Medical Writer New research suggests that Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine can protect against a mutation found in two highly contagious variants of the coronavirus that erupted in Britain and South Africa. Those variants are causing global concern. They both share a common mutation called N501Y, a slight alteration on one spot of the spike protein that coats the virus. That change is believed to be the reason they can spread so easily. Most of the vaccines being rolled out around the world train the body to recognize that spike protein and fight it. Pfizer teamed with researchers from the Univer...
Source: JEMS Special Topics - January 8, 2021 Category: Emergency Medicine Authors: JEMS Staff Tags: AP News Coronavirus Medicine Source Type: news

More Philadelphia (PA) Medics Urged to Consider COVID-19 Vaccination
Aubrey Whelan The Philadelphia Inquirer (MCT) COVID-19 vaccinations began last week in Philadelphia’s Fire Department, with the city’s 500 emergency medical technicians first in line. Among the city’s first responders, EMTs have been in closest contact with COVID patients since the beginning of the pandemic, and the department as a whole has been hard hit by the virus. But of the approximately 200 medics first offered the vaccine, only about 40% to 50% got the shot, said Fire Commissioner Adam Thiel at a news conference Wednesday. Medics had cited “everything under the sun” when declini...
Source: JEMS Special Topics - January 7, 2021 Category: Emergency Medicine Authors: JEMS Staff Tags: Coronavirus News News Feed EMS EMT Fire Department EMS Paramedic Pennsylvania Source Type: news

Watch: PA EMT Rescues Man From Fiery Wreck
A Cumberland Goodwill EMS EMT is credited with rescuing an elderly man from a fiery crash moments before a large part of the vehicle exploded. It happened around 1:30 a.m. Thursday in Carlisle, PA. Video was captured on the ambulance’s dashboard camera. EMT Grace Snyder saw the driver “was having difficulty moving away from the vehicle. She rushed to rescue him, and only 20 seconds later a larger part of the vehicle exploded,” the department said. Snyder joined the department last year and is a firefighter with the North Middleton Volunteer Fire Company. Related Extrication FundamentalsThe EM...
Source: JEMS Special Topics - January 7, 2021 Category: Emergency Medicine Authors: JEMS Staff Tags: News Operations Rescue & Vehicle Extrication Crash Pennsylvania Source Type: news

Majority of Summit (OH) EMS Workers Opt Out of COVID-19 Shot
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Majority of Summit EMS workers opt out of COVID-19 vaccine ___ (c)2021 the Akron Beacon Journal (Akron, Ohio) Visit the Akron Beacon Journal (Akron, Ohio) at www.ohio.com Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC. The post Majority of Summit (OH) EMS Workers Opt Out of COVID-19 Shot appeared first on JEMS. (Source: JEMS Special Topics)
Source: JEMS Special Topics - January 7, 2021 Category: Emergency Medicine Authors: JEMS Staff Tags: Coronavirus News News Feed EMS EMT Ohio Paramedic Source Type: news

Four Dead as Capitol Building is Overrun
By LISA MASCARO, ERIC TUCKER, MARY CLARE JALONICK and ANDREW TAYLOR Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — A violent mob loyal to President Donald Trump stormed the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday and forced lawmakers into hiding, in a stunning attempt to overturn America’s presidential election, undercut the nation’s democracy and keep Democrat Joe Biden from replacing Trump in the White House. The nation’s elected representatives scrambled to crouch under desks and don gas masks, while police futilely tried to barricade the building, one of the most jarring scenes ever to unfold in a seat of American political power....
Source: JEMS Special Topics - January 7, 2021 Category: Emergency Medicine Authors: JEMS Staff Tags: AP News Major Incidents Mass Casualty Incidents Protest Washington Source Type: news

DoD Deploys Hundreds of Medical Personnel to Aid Southern California Hospitals
According to a report from CBSLA, medical teams dispatched by the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) are heading to Southern California hospitals to help deal with the massive influx of COVID-19 hospitalizations. Military doctors, nurses, and other medical staff are expected to arrive at Los Angeles County USC Medical Center and Harbor UCLA Medical Center on Thursday; both centers have been operating its ICU at 150-percent capacity. Hospitals across Southern California have been overwhelmed with COVID-19 cases. Although some area medical centers have created more space for patients by constructing field hospitals or expa...
Source: JEMS Special Topics - January 7, 2021 Category: Emergency Medicine Authors: JEMS Staff Tags: Coronavirus News Source Type: news

EMT, Good Samaritans Pull Driver from Burning Car after NY Crash
Michael Sheridan New York Daily News (MCT) A 34-year-old man was pulled from a burning car by an EMT and two Good Samaritans after crashing on the Long Island Expressway Tuesday, authorities said. The unidentified driver was heading west when he lost control near Exit 43 in Woodbury and crashed his 2012 Audi just before 3 p.m., Nassau County police said Wednesday. The car smashed into a cement barrier before hitting the Seaford Oyster Bay Expressway overpass. Dale Bartolomeo, an FDNY EMT who also volunteers with the Huntington Manor Fire Department, saw the c...
Source: JEMS Special Topics - January 7, 2021 Category: Emergency Medicine Authors: JEMS Staff Tags: News News Feed Rescue & Vehicle Extrication Spotlight New York Source Type: news

Richmond (TX) Emergency Services Official, 40, Remembered for His Dedication
Brooke A. Lewis and J.R. Gonzales Houston Chronicle (MCT) Anthony Pryor started his job as emergency management coordinator for the city of Richmond in July 2019, just months before a global pandemic would strike the country and Fort Bend County. During the coronavirus pandemic, he jumped in head first to serve the community, said his wife Julie, a teacher. “He just wanted everybody to have the information they needed, as far as supplies, testing and how to prepare themselves and be safe,” said Julie Pryor. Anthony Pryor, a Richmond resident who’d spent...
Source: JEMS Special Topics - January 7, 2021 Category: Emergency Medicine Authors: JEMS Staff Tags: Coronavirus News News Feed EMS Texas Source Type: news

Hospitals say CA Officials Too Slow in Virus Crisis
By CHRISTOPHER WEBER and DON THOMPSON Associated Press LOS ANGELES (AP) — California reported its second-highest number of daily coronavirus deaths Wednesday with 459 lives lost, bringing the death toll to 2,504 in the last week as more than a quarter-million new weekly cases portended a continued overwhelming crush on hospitals and intensive care units strained to the breaking point. “The numbers are extraordinary,″ said Carmela Coyle, president and CEO of the California Hospital Association. “We’re not going to dodge this math. We need the state’s help.” Related Breaking the Chain of Survival? T...
Source: JEMS Special Topics - January 7, 2021 Category: Emergency Medicine Authors: JEMS Staff Tags: AP News Coronavirus California Hospital Source Type: news

How Quickly Do I Need a Second COVID-19 Vaccine Shot?
How quickly do I need a second COVID-19 vaccine shot? The first COVID-19 vaccines in the U.S. require two doses a few weeks apart. People should get some degree of protection within two weeks of the first shot, with the second shot bringing about the vaccine’s full protection. For the vaccine by Pfizer and Germany’s BioNTech, the second shot is supposed to be after three weeks. For Moderna, it’s four weeks. But how closely those guidelines should be followed has been a point of difference for the United States and the United Kingdom, which has been rolling out the Pfizer vaccine and one by Astrazeneca that r...
Source: JEMS Special Topics - January 7, 2021 Category: Emergency Medicine Authors: JEMS Staff Tags: AP News Coronavirus Medicine Source Type: news

EMS Needs to Assume the Role of Messaging for COVID-19
When the nation refers to frontline workers during the COVID-19 pandemic, there is nobody closer to the front than EMS workers. Not only do EMS workers enter the high viral loaded homes of people sick with COVID-19, but they also then spend up to about 30 minutes in the back of a poorly ventilated enclosed space with that person during treatment and transport. This exposure time places the EMS provider in direct danger – making the process of donning, decontaminating and doffing PPE of paramount importance. The beginning of the pandemic saw old protocols used for severe hypoxia. This led to an enormous amount of intubati...
Source: JEMS Special Topics - January 7, 2021 Category: Emergency Medicine Authors: JEMS Staff Tags: Commentary Coronavirus Exclusives Patient Care EMS EMT Paramedic Source Type: news

FDIC International Postponed to August 2021
(Fair Lawn, NJ, January 6, 2021) – As a result of both the State of Indiana’s government direction, general public health advisories and many industry travel restrictions in response to the ongoing impact of the COVID 19 pandemic the upcoming FDIC International, scheduled to take place on April 19-24, 2021, at the Indiana Convention Center & Lucas Oil Stadium will now take place August 19-24, 2021. “This was a difficult decision but the safety and wellbeing of our attendees, exhibitors, partners, and staff remain the most important priority for us. We have put thoughtful consideration into our next steps,...
Source: JEMS Special Topics - January 6, 2021 Category: Emergency Medicine Authors: JEMS Staff Tags: News FDIC Source Type: news

U.S. Capitol Breached by Protestors
By LISA MASCARO, ERIC TUCKER and MARY CLARE JALONICK Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Violent protesters loyal to President Donald Trump stormed the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday and forced lawmakers into hiding, in a stunning attempt to overturn America’s presidential election, undercut the nation’s democracy and keep Democrat Joe Biden from replacing Trump in the White House. The National Guard and state and federal police were called in for control, and the mayor of Washington imposed a rare evening curfew. One person was reported to have been shot. The protesters were egged on by Trump and his false attack...
Source: JEMS Special Topics - January 6, 2021 Category: Emergency Medicine Authors: JEMS Staff Tags: AP News Police Washington Source Type: news

American College of Surgeons Seeks Feedback As It Revises Field Triage Guidelines
The American College of Surgeons Committee on Trauma (ACS COT), in collaboration with several key partner organizations, is leading the revision of the 2011 Field Triage Guidelines. As a part of the revision process, the ACS COT is seeking input on the current guidelines from a broad group of EMS stakeholders, at all certification levels and in all roles. With the goal of reaching as many EMS practitioners as possible, the ACS has reached out to the National Registry of Emergency Medical Technicians for input. The National Registry is encouraging EMS practitioners, including all its stakeholders, to provide feedback to ...
Source: JEMS Special Topics - January 6, 2021 Category: Emergency Medicine Authors: JEMS Staff Tags: Administration and Leadership Patient Care EMS EMT national registry of emergency medical technicians Paramedic Source Type: news

New EMS Station in Paw Paw (WV) Goes into Service
According to a report from The Morgan Messenger, Morgan County (WV) EMS (MCEMS) officially opened its new station at 123 Winchester Street in Paw Paw on December 31, 2020. The new station is staffed by crews of two MCEMS personnel—one emergency medical technician (EMT) and one paramedic—for 24 hours a day. The emergency medical services (EMS) operation moved out of their temporary home in the Paw Paw Fire Department’s station, which has housed ambulances on Morgan County’s west end for several years, and which is under contract with the EMS company. One advanced life support (ALS) and one basic life sup...
Source: JEMS Special Topics - January 6, 2021 Category: Emergency Medicine Authors: JEMS Staff Tags: News Source Type: news