Chest Pain: Is EMS Really Best?

Short answer: Yes.

Score one for EMS. A study published last January in the American Heart Journal evaluated transport and treatment times of patients who called 911 for their chest pain and patients who sought private transportation.

They found that patients who transported themselves to the emergency room arrived at the hospital in 35 minutes while patients who called 911 arrived in 39 minutes. (On average.)

Hold the phone. Before you tell grampa to forget the phone call and jump in the car, consider this; The study also concluded that the patients who dialed 911 received initial stabilizing treatments faster AND definitive treatments faster as well.

Those who called the ambulance received initial care like oxygen, aspirin and nitro in approximately six minutes as opposed to the self transporters who took 32 minutes to receive these interventions.

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