This is the best estimate I have found:
"It is estimated that each year between 30 million and 50 million
Americans are treated and transported by emergency medical services
(EMS) systems and as many as 800,000 of those individuals receive
out-of-hospital administration of medication."
Rural/Metro Corporation
http://www.shareholder.com/ruralmetro/ReleaseDetail.cfm?ReleaseID=44524
This source gives, as the number of patients treated in ambulances,
100,000 a day, which would be 36.5 million each year:
"The hazards of ambulance transportation are coming under closer
scrutiny by safety advocates who are pushing for more crash research,
better safety features and more uniform guidelines to lead to a safer
ride for medics and the 100,000 patients treated in ambulances each
day."
The Detroit News: Safety advocates call for accident research
http://www.detnews.com/2003/specialreport/0301/27/a07-69558.htm
Here's an article that may be of interest to you, although it does not
give exact numbers of patients:
"Just half of those experiencing a heart attack call 911 for an ambulance.
The rest (typically younger men) drive themselves to a hospital or ask
someone for a ride, potentially missing out on lifesaving treatment by
paramedics before they get to the emergency room, according to a study
published in the Nov. 25 online version of Circulation: Journal of the
American Heart Association.
Those arriving by ambulance not only had a greater chance of receiving
clot-busting therapy or an angioplasty to open up clogged arteries,
the study found, they also received such therapies more quickly. They
got clot-busting medications an average of 12 minutes sooner than
those who drove themselves. Those who underwent angioplasty to open up
clogged arteries received treatment an average of 31 minutes sooner
than those who came on their own -- and 56 percent of them got it
within the 90-minute treatment window recommended by the American
Heart Association and the American College of Cardiology."
The Sun Link: Half the victims fail to call an ambulance
http://www.thesunlink.com/redesign/2003-01-06/features/44025.shtml
This was the Google search string that brought me the best results:
Google Web Search: "million" + "by emts OR paramedics OR firefighters" + "year"
://www.google.com/search?hl=en&ie=UTF-8&q=million+%22by+emts+OR+paramedics+OR+firefighters%22+year
I hope this information is helpful. If anything is unclear, or if a
link doesn't work for you, please request clarification; I'll be glad
to offer further assistance before you rate my answer.
Best regards,
pinkfreud |
