The George Washington University (GW) Heart & Vascular Institute and The Wireless Foundation, in partnership with the D.C. Fire and Emergency Medical Services, announced an innovative new public health initiative. The collaboration is designed to improve cardiac care in the nation’s capital.
Through this initiative, D.C.-area ambulances have been equipped with technology that enables rapid, wireless transmissions of EKGs to be sent to both the on-call physician’s wireless device and tertiary care hospitals.
“This technology will allow the medical team to make decisions early, in many cases before the patient even arrives at the hospital, and should significantly improve the outcomes of patients,” said Jonathan Reiner, M.D., professor of medicine at GW’s School of Medicine and Health Sciences.