TY - JOUR AU - Dong, Xuejie AU - Ding, Fang AU - Zhou, Shuduo AU - Ma, Junxiong AU - Li, Na AU - Maimaitiming, Mailikezhati AU - Xu, Yawei AU - Guo, Zhigang AU - Jia, Shaobin AU - Li, Chunjie AU - Luo, Suxin AU - Bian, Huiping AU - Luobu, Gesang AU - Yuan, Zuyi AU - Shi, Hong AU - Zheng, Zhi-jie AU - Jin, Yinzi AU - Huo, Yong PY - 2022 DA - 2022/11/23 TI - Optimizing an Emergency Medical Dispatch System to Improve Prehospital Diagnosis and Treatment of Acute Coronary Syndrome: Nationwide Retrospective Study in China JO - J Med Internet Res SP - e36929 VL - 24 IS - 11 KW - medical priority dispatch system KW - acute coronary syndrome KW - prehospital care KW - emergency medical service KW - health service KW - healthcare KW - health care KW - coronary KW - cardiology KW - cardiovascular AB - Background: Acute coronary syndrome (ACS) is the most time-sensitive acute cardiac event that requires rapid dispatching and response. The medical priority dispatch system (MPDS), one of the most extensively used types of emergency dispatch systems, is hypothesized to provide better-quality prehospital emergency treatment. However, few studies have revealed the impact of MPDS use on the process of ACS care. Objective: This study aimed to investigate whether the use of MPDS was associated with higher prehospital diagnosis accuracy and shorter prehospital delay for patients with ACS transferred by an emergency medical service (EMS), using a national database in China. Methods: This retrospective analysis was based on an integrated database of China’s MPDS and hospital registry. From January 1, 2016, to December 31, 2020, EMS-treated ACS cases were divided into before MPDS and after MPDS groups in accordance with the MPDS launch time at each EMS center. The primary outcomes included diagnosis consistency between hospital admission and discharge, and prehospital delay. Multivariable logistic regression and propensity score–matching analysis were performed to compare outcomes between the 2 groups for total ACS and subtypes. Results: A total of 9806 ACS cases (3561 before MPDS and 6245 after MPDS) treated by 43 EMS centers were included. The overall diagnosis consistency of the after MPDS group (Cohen κ=0.918, P<.001) was higher than that of the before MPDS group (Cohen κ=0.889, P<.001). After the use of the MPDS, the call-to-EMS arrival time was shortened in the matched ACS cases (20.0 vs 16.0 min, P<.001; adjusted difference: –1.67, 95% CI –2.33 to –1.02; P<.001) and in the subtype of ST-elevation myocardial infarction (adjusted difference: –3.81, 95% CI –4.63 to –2.98, P<.001), while the EMS arrival-to-door time (20.0 vs 20.0 min, P=.31) was not significantly different in all ACS cases and subtypes. Conclusions: The optimized use of MPDS in China was associated with increased diagnosis consistency and a reduced call-to-EMS arrival time among EMS-treated patients with ACS. An emergency medical dispatch system should be designed specifically to fit into different prehospital modes in the EMS system on a regional basis. SN - 1438-8871 UR - https://www.jmir.org/2022/11/e36929 UR - https://doi.org/10.2196/36929 UR - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/36416876 DO - 10.2196/36929 ID - info:doi/10.2196/36929 ER -