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Loud & Clear: EMS Guiding Principles – Advanced Continuing Education for Paramedics, EMTs & Prehospital Care Providers

Paramedic training is over, you’re in the front seat now. Whether day 1 or day 1,000 you can’t shake the fear you’re underprepared. You were taught to systematically decide if A… do B. But what if “A” wasn’t in the book? The truth is each emergency call is too unique to teach the right response to every situation. We need to go beyond algorithmic thinking and understand deeper principles, the WHY behind the algorithm. When every decision counts you want to rely on a framework that will guide you when things don’t make sense. Loud & Clear: EMS Guiding Principles is your resource to build that framework. Through discussions with experts, review of evidence-based best practices, and real-world case studies we teach you one step past what you learned in paramedic school. But all of this advanced education is connected back to the guiding principles that answer the question- “at the end of the day, what actually matters to the patient I have in front of me?” Our mission is to elevate your practice and help you improve patient outcomes in every emergency situation. You may not feel ready, you may not feel like you know enough, but by understanding the guiding principles of emergency medicine you can become an expert EMS clinician. Because what you do matters.

Let’s discuss the intricacies of evidence-based medicine (EBM) with Dr. Ben Li. The conversation dives deep into understanding different types of medical studies, their hierarchies, and how EMS providers can apply them to their practice. The episode covers evaluating research, the importance of study design, confounders, sample size, and how to discern the relevance and applicability of research findings. Dr. Li provides practical advice for critically appraising literature and emphasizes doing so in a way that is personally relevant to the listener’s practice. This episode is essential for anyone in EMS or emergency medicine looking to deepen their understanding of medical research and how it impacts patient care. Enter to win Airpods, Cric-a-lot, and a belt buckle!

Resources that can help

Critical appraisal guides:

https://casp-uk.net/casp-tools-checklists/ (my personal favorite)

https://jbi.global/critical-appraisal-tools

Reporting guidelines (similar to appraisal guides, but more are standards for the investigators to use and follow):

https://www.equator-network.org/reporting-guidelines

00:00 Introduction and Priorities
00:34 Show Restructure Announcement
01:42 The Evolution of EMS Practices
03:57 Understanding Evidence-Based Medicine
05:23 Interview with Dr. Ben Lee
07:20 Approaching and Appraising Medical Studies
08:14 Challenges in EMS Research
13:47 Study Design and Hierarchy
31:33 Applying Research to Practice
39:26 Final Thoughts and Takeaways

Resources