Clinical competencies of emergency medical services paramedics in responding to emergency conditions using Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE) in Guilan

Abstract

Objective: Evaluating the abilities of emergency medical services (EMS) staff who are in the frontline of the diseases could be an excellent reflection of the accuracy of curriculum both before and after graduation. This study was done to determine the clinical competencies of Guilan EMS staff in responding to emergency conditions using Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE). Methods: In this descriptive study, 70 EMS staff from selected Emergency Centres in Guilan were recruited. Data were collected using a questionnaire and a checklist which included 9 different skills. Validity of the checklist was assessed by obtaining the opinions of 10 experts. The content validity index (CVI) and content validity ratio (CVR) of the checklist were 0.7 and 0.8, respectively. The reliability of the checklist was obtained using the test-retest method (r=0.89). In order to collect data, observations were done using the designated checklist. Data were analysed using SPSS software version 22 and descriptive statistical tests. Results: Findings showed that 56.3% of the paramedics got good scores for trauma competency but the mean scores for two competencies of spinal cord immobilization and vehicle extrication were low, indicating major skills problem. There was a statistically significant relationship between education (P=0.02) and work experience (P=0.03) as well as clinical skills in confronting trauma. Conclusion: Although the EMS staff had an acceptable range of performance in most of the skills, it seems that there is a need for training of performance-based competencies in which paramedics had a poor performance.

Explore pre-hospital emergency challenges in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic: A quality content analysis in the Iranian context

“…The COVID-19 outbreak originated in Wuhan, China, and has swiftly spread worldwide within a short period ( 1 , 2 ). The COVID-19 outbreak is one of the most serious health threats, and it is likely to be the worst pandemic since 1918 ( 1 , 2 ).…”

“…The COVID-19 outbreak originated in Wuhan, China, and has swiftly spread worldwide within a short period ( 1 , 2 ). The COVID-19 outbreak is one of the most serious health threats, and it is likely to be the worst pandemic since 1918 ( 1 , 2 ). Until April 19th, 2021, the total number of people infected with COVID-19 exceeded 142 million, and more than 3 million died of it.…”

“…A pre-hospital emergency is a community-oriented system that responds to the medical needs of the injured or patients with acute and emergency illnesses outside of health care facilities until they are transferred to a medical cent ( 6 , 7 ). This system is engaged in responding to emergency telephone calls, visiting the scene, providing care by trained staff at the scene, continuing to provide care in vehicles such as ambulances and helicopters, and transferring the injured or victims to a medical center designated by the emergency operations center ( 2 ). As a result, pre-hospital emergency care plays a vital role in sustaining human life ( 8 ).…”