AMBULANCE COMMUNICATIONS CENTRE TECHNOLOGY
The technology used in our modern Ambulance Communications Centres has been designed and chosen to provide the best possible service to patients, ambulance officers, hospitals and ambulance service providers. The systems have been designed to meet international best practice requirements, and are used widely throughout the world – including the United Kingdom, United States and Europe.
Outcomes of the more sophisticated technology we use today – compared to the pen and paper systems of the 1950s when 111 was first introduced in New Zealand – include:
- better coordination of ambulance responses
- better communication between Communications Centre staff and ambulance crews, and ultimately
- improved outcomes for patients.
The Ambulance Communications Centres today operate as one virtual communications centre, able to assist each other seamlessly if one is facing higher than usual demand or during a civil defence emergency. This is all thanks to highly trained staff and modern technology including:
Communications Centre linkages
The three new Ambulance Communications Centres are all linked for the first time, with inter-connected telephone, paging, radio and dispatching systems nationwide. Full back-up arrangements mean the Communications Centres can support each other during times of unprecedented demand or a Civil Defence Emergency.
Advanced electronic mapping systems
The Ambulance Communciations Centres all use the same advanced electronic mapping systems, providing extensive data throughout New Zealand.
The mapping data is provided by Land Information NZ (LINZ), which is responsible for providing New Zealand's authoritative land and seabed information. LINZ is the primary collection agency for core data and is a government department responsible to the Minister for Land Information.
The maps used in the Ambulance Communications Centres are digital maps provided by Terralink. This same digital data is also provided to Police and Fire. Terralink not only takes their data feed from LINZ but also relies on data provided by Territorial Local Authorities (TLAs) and updates from Ambulance, Police and Fire. These agencies all undertake to share the information they have on the changes that are taking place all the time, new suburbs, new roads and so on. Terralink maintains this comprehensive and accurate physical land database of New Zealand.
The Terralink maps are upgraded monthly to reflect changes to all road data. Other data such as parks, rivers etc is updated annually. This can mean that the Ambulance Communications Centres could have information that is not yet available in the printed maps available through hard copy providers.
Automatic Vehicle Locators
GPS signals are sent from each ambulance to the electronic mapping system in the Ambulance Communications Centres. Communications Centre staff can now see the status and location of every ambulance in New Zealand at any given time, its availability for dispatch and proximity to emergencies. Dispatchers can also visually track the movement of road and air ambulances on-screen. This ensures the dispatch of the nearest and most appropriate resources to emergencies, and is also used to guide ambulance crews into difficult locations.
Advanced Medical Priority Dispatching System (AMPDS)
The Advanced Medical Priority Dispatching System is a world-class system designed to ensure that each 111 caller requesting an ambulance receives a professional and complete service, resulting in the most appropriate response being dispatched. The system is used internationally by 2,300 emergency services and is the most advanced medically managed dispatch system available today for Ambulance services.
The system assists our Communications Centre staff in determining the seriousness of patients’ conditions and scene safety. A specialised call taking system, known as ProQA, assists Communications Centre staff in triaging emergency ambulance calls and ensures that the appropriate clinical response and speed of response is dispatched. Callers are asked a series of specialised questions to determine the seriousness of the patient’s condition and enable ambulances to be dispatched first to the patients most in need of urgent assistance. This system recognises that the number of ambulances is finite, therefore the dispatch of ambulances takes place on a priority basis – i.e. ambulances are dispatched to the more seriously injured or unwell people first. The system also determines the levels of clinical capability required for dispatch to each patient.
The system is designed to deliver safe and effective patient care based on the knowledge of the caller, who may be the patient or the person calling on behalf of the patient. The system also ensures ambulance staff have full and detailed information about the patient, the patient’s condition and the safety of the scene before arriving.
The system is used throughout the world, including in the United Kingdom, the United States and Europe. Its use is overseen in New Zealand by a Clinical Advisory Group of Medical Directors. A regular audit is undertaken on call samples from the whole population, with any required updates implemented nationwide.
Caller Location ID
All Ambulance Communications Centres have Caller Location Identification systems. This technology electronically confirms the location of 111 calls made from a land-line to 111 (using the Telecom and TelstraClear white pages data), giving additional assurances that ambulances are being dispatched to the correct location. The call taker will still need to verify with the caller whether the address they are calling from is the address of the emergency. Joint Emergency Services are working to obtain Caller Location ID from all cellular providers as soon as practicable.
Mobile Data Terminals
Installing Mobile Data Terminals in 600 ambulances is one of the final steps in the project. These screens will enable the electronic transfer of more extensive information to and from our Ambulance Communications Centres and ambulance crews than currently available by pager, phone or radio communication. Benefits include more detailed patient and scene information for ambulance crews, two-way message transfer, secure channels, and continuous updates as more information comes to hand in the Communications Centres.
