An Introduction to EMS Research

Lawrence Brown, EMT-P began his career as a volunteer with the Perquimans County Rescue Squad in Hertford, North Carolina. In 1991 he joined the Department of Emergency Medicine at East Carolina University as an EMS instructor, and he quickly became involved in a number of research projects. Since then, getting EMS providers involved in research work has become one of his primary missions. In 1998 Lawrence moved to Syracuse, New York, where he spends too much time working and not enough time sailing. Liz Criss, RN, CEN, MEd began her career as a research assistant in the Section of Emergency Medicine at the University of Arizona in 1983. She moved into prehospital research in 1984 and has devoted the last 17 years to prehospital research, education, and system development. In addition to prehospital research, she works with the Emergency Department of University Medical Center. Liz still lives in Arizona with her husband of 25 years, two grown children, her dogs, and a small flock of pink flamingos. Heramba Prasad, MD, FACEP has had extensive EMS experience in three different states: Illinois, New York, and North Carolina. He has published a number of EMS-related papers and one previous textbook. In 1997, after 10 years as an academic emergency physician, Heramba took a brief hiatus to work in the community hospital setting. In 1999 he saw the error of his ways and moved to central New York, where he again practices academic emergency medicine, owns a horse farm, and claims to be a gentleman farmer.

I. BASICS.

 1. Why Do We Need EMS Research?
 2. The Research Process.
II. DECIDING WHAT TO STUDY.

 3. Choosing a Research Topic.
 4. Conducting a Literature Search.
 5. Defining the Question and Formulating a Hypothesis.
III. DESIGNING THE STUDY.

 6. Determining the Type of Study.
 7. Developing the Methods.
 8. Consulting a Statistician and Performing a Power Calculation.
IV. INTERACTIONS WITH OTHERS.

 9. Ethical Considerations and IRB Approval.
10. Getting Colleagues On-Board.
V. CONDUCTING THE RESEARCH.

11. Conducting a Pilot Study.
12. Implementing the Study and Collecting Data.
13. Describing and Analyzing the Data.
14. Reporting the Findings.
APPENDICES.

Appendix 1. Frequently Asked Questions.
Appendix 2. Glossary.
Appendix 3. Mentor Organizations and Scientific Meetings.
Appendix 4. EMS Related Journals.
Appendix 5. Literature Search Software.
Appendix 6. Statistical Analysis Software.
Appendix 7. Cited Literature and Suggested Reading.
Index.