Original author(s) | Richard Price |
---|---|
Developer(s) | PulsePoint Foundation |
Initial release | 2011 (iOS); 2012 (Android) |
Stable release | |
Available in | English, Spanish, French, Japanese |
Website | pulsepoint.org |
PulsePoint is a 911-connected mobile app that allows users to view and receive live alerts of calls being responded to by fire departments and emergency medical services. The app aims to have bystanders trained in CPR help cardiac arrest victims before emergency crews arrive, which can increase their chance of survival. [3] [4] The app interfaces with the local government public safety answering point, and notifies users only if the victim is in a public place and only to users that are in the immediate vicinity of the emergency. [5] In February 2017, PulsePoint introduced a professional version called Verified Responder that also alerts in residential settings. [6] Based in the San Francisco Bay Area, PulsePoint is run by a public 501(c)(3) non-profit foundation of the same name. [7] As of November 2024, the foundation reported that connected agencies had requested the assistance of 1,013,000 nearby responders for 294,000 cardiac arrest events. [8]
In addition to Android and iOS, PulsePoint offers a web client at web.pulsepoint.org that allows users to view the same data that appears in PulsePoint Respond with a browser. PulsePoint uses a standardized set of incident types normalized across Public Safety Answering Points (PSAP) and Computer-aided Dispatch (CAD) system vendors. [9] The foundation also underwrites an automated external defibrillator (AED) app and registry to provide location information to PulsePoint responders and dispatchers. [10]
In September 2018, the PulsePoint Respond app was approved by the First Responder Network Authority (FirstNet) and added to the App Catalog. [11] PulsePoint Respond is a FirstNet Certified app. [12]
Richard Price, president of the PulsePoint Foundation, said that the idea for the application came to him in 2010 while he was serving as the fire chief in the San Ramon Valley. [13] While he was out to lunch, he heard sirens and saw one of his own engines pull up in front of the restaurant he was dining in. It turned out that someone next door had collapsed and gone into cardiac arrest. Price was not dispatched to the call and did not know about it, but he was CPR certified and carried a defibrillator in his car. This incident left him wondering if technology could help produce a way for civilians who were trained to help in the event of a nearby emergency. [14] The American Heart Association estimates that 383,000 out of hospital cardiac arrests occur each year in the United States. [15]
In April 2012, PulsePoint was one of only five mobile applications worldwide to be nominated for a Webby Award. [16] It was nominated under the category of Best Use of GPS or Location Technology. A year later, in 2013, it was once again nominated in the same category. [17] In 2014, the application was once again nominated, this time in the category of City & Urban Innovation. [18]
Along with the intention of getting CPR started faster and more often, a key objective of the PulsePoint Respond app is to inform those near a cardiac arrest event of the location of Automated External Defibrillators (AED) in the immediate vicinity of the victim. [19] To accomplish this, the PulsePoint Foundation maintains an on‑demand (cloud-based) registry of AED locations and encourages anyone to contribute device locations. [20] This crowdsourced AED location information is subsequently reviewed by local public safety agencies with support from the foundation. [21] Approved AEDs are then shown to responders and dispatchers during cardiac emergencies via the PulsePoint AED Registry API. [22] All aspects of the registry are provided free of charge. [23]
On April 12, 2017, the PulsePoint Foundation announced a partnership with Priority Dispatch Corporation to allow dispatchers to inform callers of the location of nearby AEDs [24] when the Medical Priority Dispatch System deemed them necessary. [25] The PulsePoint AED registry is FirstNet Certified for use in emergency communications centers in the United States. [26]
In June 2019 PulsePoint extended the registry to include other collocated resources including Naloxone (e.g., Narcan®) and Epinephrine (e.g., EpiPen®), along with Bleeding Control Kits. [27]
Some privacy experts have expressed concern that the app may invade the medical privacy of victims. [13] The Los Angeles County Fire Department, one of the many users of the app, has pointed out that The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) protects the privacy of identifiable health information. [28] On a ‘CPR Needed’ notification, which is sent out through the app, the only information that is seen is an address (which must be in a public place) and a business name, if available. The individually identifiable health information protected by HIPAA, such as name, birth date, or SSN are not reported or even known by the PulsePoint application. [28]
Additional concerns that have been raised are that the app can cause too many bystanders to congregate at the scene of an emergency and that those responding via the app may not be trained in CPR or AED. [29]
On May 9, 2018, the International Association of Fire Chiefs (IAFC) issued a Position Statement on PulsePoint. [30]
Along with being able to view a list of calls in real time, users also have the option to listen in to radio traffic to accompany the application’s incident list. [31] During a CPR-needed response, this functionality allows citizen and off-duty rescuers to hear the dispatcher update emergency responders regarding patient location, scene conditions, etc. [27] To facilitate the live feed, PulsePoint uses Broadcastify, a website that is the largest broadcaster of live public safety audio feeds, to stream radio channels within the app. [31]
On December 11, 2018, PulsePoint released v4.1 for iOS [32] that included the ability to override a device's Do Not Disturb setting and play an alert sound even when the device is muted for “CPR Needed” alerts. [33] This required a special entitlement from Apple. [34]
An additional feature of the application is an interface with Flickr that allows agencies to share photos through the app. Users can view incident, event, station, apparatus, and other photos that the agency chooses to share. [31]
As of January 2024, the dispatch centers in more than 4,950 communities were connected to PulsePoint with over 3,000,000 users. [8] Some of the most well-known agencies include:
Orange=Dispatched (?=Awaiting Acknowledge) Green=Enroute Red=On Scene (^=Available on Scene) Yellow=Transport Blue=Transport Arrived Gray=Cleared from Incident [113]
The codes themselves are defined by each agency, and are typically followed by a number to identify a particular instance of each asset type. A legend is sometimes provided on the agency information page, and following are some common examples:
B=Battalion BC=Battalion Chief E=Engine CMD=Command CPT=Helicopter C=Crew DZR=Dozer HM=Hazmat ME=Medic Engine MRE=Medic Rescue Engine P=Patrol R=Rescue RE=Rescue Engine SQ=Squad T=Truck U=Utility WT=Water Tender
Cardiac arrest, also known as sudden cardiac arrest (SCA), is when the heart suddenly and unexpectedly stops beating. When the heart stops beating, blood cannot properly circulate around the body and the blood flow to the brain and other organs is decreased. When the brain does not receive enough blood, this can cause a person to lose consciousness and brain cells can start to die due to lack of oxygen. Coma and persistent vegetative state may result from cardiac arrest. Cardiac arrest is also identified by a lack of central pulses and abnormal or absent breathing.
Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) is an emergency procedure consisting of chest compressions often combined with artificial ventilation, or mouth to mouth in an effort to manually preserve intact brain function until further measures are taken to restore spontaneous blood circulation and breathing in a person who is in cardiac arrest. It is recommended for those who are unresponsive with no breathing or abnormal breathing, for example, agonal respirations.
An automated external defibrillator or automatic electronic defibrillator (AED) is a portable electronic device that automatically diagnoses the life-threatening cardiac arrhythmias of ventricular fibrillation (VF) and pulseless ventricular tachycardia, and is able to treat them through defibrillation, the application of electricity which stops the arrhythmia, allowing the heart to re-establish an effective rhythm.
A lifeguard is a rescuer who supervises the safety and rescue of swimmers, surfers, and other water sports participants such as in a swimming pool, water park, beach, spa, river and lake. Lifeguards are trained in swimming and CPR/AED first aid, certified in water rescue using a variety of aids and equipment depending on requirements of their particular venue. In some areas, lifeguards are part of the emergency services system to incidents and in some communities, lifeguards may function as the primary EMS provider.
A certified first responder is a person who has completed a course and received certification in providing pre-hospital care for medical emergencies. Certified individuals should have received much more instruction than someone who is trained in basic first aid and cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) but they are not necessarily a substitute for more advanced emergency medical care rendered by emergency medical technicians and paramedics. First responders typically provide advanced first aid level care, CPR, and automated external defibrillator (AED) usage. The term "certified first responder" is not to be confused with "first responder", which is a generic term referring to the first medically trained responder to arrive on scene and medically trained telecommunication operators who provide pre-arrival medical instructions as trained Emergency Medical Dispatchers (EMD). Many police officers and firefighters are required to receive training as certified first responders. Advanced medical care is typically provided by EMS, although some police officers and firefighters also train to become emergency medical technicians or paramedics.
Basic life support (BLS) is a level of medical care which is used for patients with life-threatening condition of cardiac arrest until they can be given full medical care by advanced life support providers. It can be provided by trained medical personnel, such as emergency medical technicians, qualified bystanders and anybody who is trained for providing BLS and/or ACLS.
The Seattle & King County Emergency Medical Services System is a fire-based two-tier response system providing prehospital basic and advanced life support services.
Laerdal is a multinational company that develops products and programs for healthcare providers, voluntary organizations, educational institutions, hospitals, and the military worldwide. Laerdal has over 2,000 employees in 26 countries. The headquarters is located in Stavanger, Norway.
Louisville Metro Emergency Medical Services is the primary provider of pre-hospital life support and emergency care within Louisville-Jefferson County, Kentucky. LMEMS is a governmental department that averages 90,000 calls for service, both emergency and non-emergency, each year.
The chain of survival refers to a series of actions that, properly executed, reduce the mortality associated with sudden cardiac arrest. Like any chain, the chain of survival is only as strong as its weakest link. The six interdependent links in the chain of survival are early recognition of sudden cardiac arrest and access to emergency medical care, early CPR, early defibrillation, early advanced cardiac life support, and physical and emotional recovery. The first three links in the chain can be performed by lay bystanders, while the second three links are designated to medical professionals. Currently, between 70 and 90% of cardiac arrest patients die before they reach the hospital. However, a cardiac arrest does not have to be lethal if bystanders can take the right steps immediately.
The history of cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) can be traced as far back as the literary works of ancient Egypt. However, it was not until the 18th century that credible reports of cardiopulmonary resuscitation began to appear in the medical literature.
The Cardiac Arrest Registry to Enhance Survival or CARES was initiated in 2004 as an agreement between the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Department of Emergency Medicine at Emory University. It is a simple but powerful database that allows cities to collect a small set of performance measures from 9-1-1, first responders, fire departments, and Emergency Medical Services, and link it with outcome data from hospitals. This data enables cities to perform internal benchmarking and improve their response to cardiac arrest by strengthening the chain of survival in their community. Because most EMS systems don't measure their response effectively, they are unable to implement change in an effective manner. Since the program's inception, survival from cardiac arrest in the city of Atlanta has increased from 3% to 15%. For the last half of 2007, survival in Atlanta increased to 31.2%.
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Every year sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) kills between 35,000 and 45,000 people in Canada and approximately 350,000 people in the United States; 85% of SCAs are caused by ventricular fibrillation (VF). Receiving defibrillation from an automated external defibrillator (AED) is a key component of the 'chain of survival' for victims of SCA. Chances of survival from a SCA decrease by 7–10% every minute that a victim does not receive defibrillation. Attempts at reducing time until defibrillation have largely focused on improving traditional emergency medical service (EMS) responders and implementing publicly available defibrillator (PAD) programs. In the United States approximately 60% of SCAs are treated by EMS. Equipping police vehicles with AEDs and incorporating them in the emergency dispatching process when a SCA is suspected, can reduce the time until defibrillation for a victim suffering an out-of-hospital sudden cardiac arrest. There are numerous studies which confirm a strong coloration between equipping police vehicles with AEDs and reduced time until defibrillation which ultimately translates into improved survival rates from SCA. As a result of these demonstrable statistics, police departments across North America have begun equipping some or all of their police vehicles with AEDs.
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The Medical Tactical Certificate Training Program, also known as Med Tac, is a global bystander rescue care training program that focuses on life-saving actions that can be performed by non-medical bystanders for the eight leading preventable causes of death to children, youth, and adults. In urban areas in the United States, professional first responders arrive at the scene of an emergency after approximately 10 minutes. Immediate rescue care by bystanders is most effective within three minutes of an event. Treatment within this time has been found to have a significant effect on rates of survival and permanent harm. Created and expanded upon after the dramatic increase in active shooter and terrorism events, Med Tac integrates the American Heart Association Heartsaver CPR/AED Training Program, or the American Red Cross equivalent training, and the Stop the Bleed Program sponsored by the United States Department of Homeland Security and American College of Surgeons.
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