Welcome to the Pennsylvania EMS Safety Event Reporting System. This system
collects anonymous reports of EMS system safety events for the purpose of
preventing future events across the system. The reports that are submitted
through this website will be used as part of the regional and statewide quality
improvement plans to make changes to the system that will reduce or prevent
future similar events.
We encourage anonymous reporting from any individual who encounters or
recognizes a situation in which a safety event occurred while a patient was
being cared for by the EMS (emergency medical services) system. This reporting
system is not in place to punish EMS practitioners for safety events. A similar
system used by airline pilots has led to important airline system improvements
based upon pilot reported "near miss" situations and errors. We hope that the
anonymity of this reporting system will allow EMS practitioners to feel
comfortable in reporting even their own safety events so that the system as a
whole can be improved.
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This reporting system defines safety event as any event or action that
leads to or has the potential to lead to a worsened patient outcome related to
the event or action; these may be related to systems, operations, device or
equipment failures, drug administration, or any aspect of patient care.
Safety events include "near misses" that are recognized before they actually
occur.
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This reporting system is only applicable to safety events that are related to
care given by components of the EMS system (for example, care provided by
ambulance attendants, first responders, EMTs, EMT-paramedics, quick response
services, ambulance services, air ambulance services, dispatch centers, and
medical command facilities.) This is not the place to submit concerns related
to patient care in hospitals or by non-EMS health care providers.
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This reporting system is anonymous. Individuals who submit
information to this website cannot be identified. Individuals must not submit
information that identifies any patient, EMS practitioner, EMS service, date of
incident, location of incident, or any other information that may identify any
of these entities, Submissions with these identifiers will be deleted from the
system, and the report will not serve the purpose of reducing future events.
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This reporting system is separate from the existing complaint investigation
procedure. Any individual that wants to submit a formal
complaint against an EMS provider or practitioner should contact their local
EMS regional council to report the complaint through the established process.
Please contact the Department of Health EMS Office at 717-787-8740 if you need
assistance in contacting the appropriate regional EMS council office.
Thank you for your interest in improving the quality of patient care provided
by Pennsylvania's Emergency Medical Services system.
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