EMS Telemedicine

• Avel eCare is a telemedicine provider (think virtual health care center) based out of Sioux Falls, South Dakota.
• Its team of expert physicians, nurses, and clinicians are all trained in telemedicine and deliver services to support local care teams and caregivers.
• Many on the Avel team also have experience with bedside patient care.
• They believe every person and every community deserves access to healthcare, and they have been delivering high-quality telemedicine services since 1993.

• The Telemedicine in Motion initiative provides 24/7 access to a team of board-certified emergency physicians and experienced nurses to render emergency care and peer-to-peer support for EMS agencies in the State of South Dakota.
• Given the geographic and connectivity challenges, Avel eCare's goal as the service provider is to deliver the highest quality care possible while ensuring a fantastic user experience.

• Agencies who enroll will have their ambulances equipped with a cabin-mounted telehealth tablet, microphones, speakers, antennas, and cellular boosters to support strong connectivity in the field.
• This package of technology is well suited to work in noisy, rural environments and has been designed to augment the services and actions of EMS professionals.
• When responding to a call, the EMS crew can call Avel eCare Emergency and, within moments, the board-certified ER physician and team of nurses will show up on the screen to assist.

• The Avel team has been prepped on the capacity of the responding EMS crew, their designation as a Basic Life Support or Advance Life Support ambulance, and have a solid understanding of the rig and its layout.
• Avel's Emergency medicine experts can help with a variety of actions and procedures, ranging from airway management and trauma care, to ECG interpretation and medication decisions, as appropriate.
• The Avel team can also call the receiving hospital to alert them that a patient will be soon arriving.

• The Avel eCare team will provide training during the implementation phase of the program to ensure end users have the skills and workflows needed to fully benefit from Avel eCare EMS.
• The training is concise and will not take up much personnel time. Estimated go-live training is between one and three hours.

• The Avel eCare team will provide training during the implementation phase of the program to ensure end users have the skills and workflows needed to fully benefit from Avel eCare EMS.
• The training is concise and will not take up much personnel time. Estimated go-live training is between one and three hours.

"I just wanted to reach out to you to express my appreciation for all of the people who assisted in any way for the telehealth implementation. From Governor Noem on down. I am SO proud to be a part of this giant leap forward for EMS! I know all of you have put a lot of time and thought into this project. It shows by how well it is being presented and implemented. The communication has been amazing! Avel has been wonderful to work with, I was a little hesitant in the beginning, but Avel made the whole process very easy. THANK YOU for being proactive and for everything you do for EMS in South Dakota."
- Kris Escott, Faith Ambulance Director

"We just need that second opinion from them to let the patient know that 'yes we are doing the right steps' I think it is just a security thing for the patient also."
- Renee Irwin, Elk Point Ambulance Director

"Having Avel eCare as your partner, it takes the pressure off and keeps you calmer, while boosting our teams' confidence. As sometimes when you are by yourself, and it is a 2-person crew, you would like to run something by someone; now you got that in the back of a rig in the middle of nowhere, Avel is here to help!"
- Randy Angermeier, Clark County Ambulance Director/EMT

"Having someone there, so quick, giving advice, calling ahead; the camera can see everything... I was able to focus on the patient, focus on controlling the bleeding. We have 3 to 4 people who do 90% of calls, folks are getting burned out. This will help the younger EMTs with intimidation and getting over lack of experience. This kind of service is going to save rural EMS in South Dakota and across the US."
- Edward Konechne, Kimball Ambualnce EMT

"It was the wintertime and Avel was alerted that there was a multi-car pileup on the freeway. The responding EMS Agency pulled the Telemedicine in Motion team up and the Avel doctor and nurses began assisting with the care of two patients in the back of the same ambulance. Given the conditions, the Avel team was able to coordinate care with the hospital and help take notes because the EMS professional’s hands were cold and had a hard time gripping the pen. In addition, the Avel doctor helped consult with the care providers and make sure patients were kept warm because they had been on the scene for a significant portion of time."
- Anonymous

"An adult was experiencing chest pains, EMS agency responded and called Avel to have our board certified physician interpret the EKG and based on that interpretation, expedite the patient transport to the correct treatment center. The Avel team also helped verify medication dosing for the patient. This was the standard process, but Avel helped reassure and backup the EMS agency."
- Anonymous