Emergency medical services systems development: A national initiative

The passage of the Emergency Medical Services Systems (EMSS) Act of 1973 by Congress has provided the mechanism and funds for communities to develop regional EMS delivery systems across the Nation. With the passage of the EMSS Act, the Congress mandated that emergency medical care programs funded with Federal dollars must address, plan, and implement a "systems approach" for the provision of emergency response and medical care. In the EMSS Act, some fifteen component requirements have been identified to assist system planners, coordinators, and operators in their attempts to establish comprehensive, areawide and regional EMS programs. These components are: manpower, training, communications, transportation, facilities critical care units, public safety agencies, consumer participation, accessibility to care, transfer agreements, standard medical record keeping, consumer information and education, evaluation, disaster linkage, and mutual aid agreements. Development of a national program, its projects, and progress, is the basis of this report.