Firefighters are cleaning up after a second alarm house fire in Naches Heights. They responded to the 4700 Block of Naches Heights Road around 5:30 Wednesday morning. When our NBC Right Now team got on the scene they saw flames coming from the roof. Firefighters tell us the it engulfed the attic and front doorway.
- PUB DATE: 1/3/2018 8:09:58 AM - SOURCE: NBCRightNow.com

ESO Solutions, the leading data and software company serving emergency medical services, fire departments, and hospitals, recently shared the trends it predicts will have the biggest impact on EMS organizations in 2018: EMS organizations will play a greater role in decision-making affecting patients; more EMS organizations will feel the influence of value-based purchasing by payers; integration and sharing of data and information between providers will increase; and finance changes will create uncertainty for EMS organizations.

“2018 will see the healthcare reimbursement system remain in flux as we shift away from fee-for-service and toward a pay-for-performance model,” said Brent Myers, MD, Senior Medical Consultant at ESO. “We also believe the most successful EMS organizations will be the ones that leverage data and integrate and share information with other providers. During the year, this trend will have an increasing impact on how shared decision-making changes and evolves.”

Key EMS Predictions for 2018:

• Shared decision-making will continue to evolve:  Access to increasingly richer data will influence decision-making about patient care. As electronic patient care records (ePCR) software continues to mature, paramedics and other prehospital medical professionals will have a fuller picture of a patient’s medical history, ensuring that patients receive the right attention in the field and get to the right hospital for the right treatment.
• EMS will increasingly play a role in value-based purchasing: Although value-based purchasing has been implemented across hospitals, it has yet to come to EMS directly. Still, the scrutiny around quality of care that value-based purchasing brings to hospitals will increasingly impact EMS indirectly. As hospitals seek to ensure maximum reimbursement for services rendered, they will increasingly look to EMS as a partner to steer patients to the most cost effective and appropriate care venue.
• EMS organizations will increasingly discover value in data: The proliferation in EMS of both patient-care and operational data will continue to accelerate. Organizations that tap into this data will be able to operate more efficiently, as well as demonstrate the value they bring to their communities and the healthcare system. Organizations will discover greater value in integrated data that incorporates information from multiple sources, such as patient demographic and outcomes data from hospitals.
• The changing insurance environment will create reimbursement uncertainty for EMS organizations: Uncertainty about health insurance – such as higher deductibles, potential increases in uninsured patients, and changes in Medicaid coverage – will have an effect on EMS organizations that bill a patient’s insurance for services, especially in terms of how they are reimbursed, when they are paid, and for what services they are paid.

“Organizations that stay informed about these trends, especially the ones that leverage data and analytics to truly understand ROI and outcomes, will have an advantage over organizations that don’t,” added Myers. “That advantage will become even more significant as EMS gets smarter and more predictive with the information at their disposal.”

Download the 2018 EMS Predictions whitepaper here.

About ESO Solutions

ESO Solutions, Inc., is dedicated to improving community health and safety through the power of data. Since its founding in 2004, the company has been

Coatesville, PA: Witmer Public Safety Group (WPSG), Inc. was proud and excited to assist with Jerry Corrado’s annual toy drive by delivering nearly 60 unwrapped presents to his home on Dec. 19.

Corrado, a former WPSG, Inc. employee, had been collecting and delivering presents to children in the pediatric ward and emergency room at Chester County Hospital for 10 years prior to WPSG, Inc.’s involvement this year.

“(My wife and I) started the toy drive when our daughter was working as a medical tech in the pediatric unit (at the hospital),” Corrado said. “She noticed how old the toys were in the toy room. So we asked if we could do a toy drive (during the holidays). The hospital agreed to it, and the first year we collected around 250 toys.”

Instead of stockpiling the toys in the toy room, Jerry and his wife gave them directly to the children. Each subsequent toy drive produced more toys than the previous year. In 2016, 1,687 were collected and distributed.

Because of Corrado’s steadfast, selfless dedication to elevating children’s spirits during the holiday season, WPSG, Inc. decided to get involved with the toy drive: From Dec. 5 to Dec. 15, employees were asked to donate unwrapped, new toys. At the conclusion of the effort, over 60 had been collected – ranging from books and stuffed animals to board games – easily filling two large, cardboard boxes.

“As a company, we wanted to contribute to this worthy cause to make Jerry feel loved,” said WPSG, Inc. Merchandising Specialist Amanda Keesey. “We wanted to let him know that he has a whole team of people behind him that care,” she said.

Keesey, accompanied by several other employees and WPSG, Inc. President Ruth Witmer, loaded the boxes into a company van Tuesday night and dropped them off at Corrado’s home. Additionally, Corrado’s holiday spirit extends past his philanthropic endeavors: His house and front yard are adorned with festive, holiday-themed lights, decorations, and ornaments. While visually impressive, his Christmas-themed display is also used as an entrée to entice onlookers into learning about the toy drive.

On Saturday, Corrado and his wife delivered a total of 1,614 toys to the hospital.

About TheFireStore and Witmer Public Safety Group, Inc.
TheFireStore, a division of Witmer Public Safety Group, Inc., offers product lines from more than 400 manufacturers. Witmer Public Safety Group's motto is Equipping Heroes™, and this continues as they extend their commitment to provide the industry's best equipment and supplies to the professional men and women who serve to ensure the public's safety. For additional information, please call (800) 852-6088 or visit TheFireStore.com.

 

Four people and a pet were able to escape safely from a fire burning in a carport attached to a house near Bothell early Wednesday morning. The fire began at about 4 a.m. in the 20200 block of 45th Dr. SE, located in North Creek, just northeast of Bothell. Snohomish County Fire District 7 said a 10-year-old was among the four people who got out of the home while the carport burned.
- PUB DATE: 1/3/2018 6:52:33 AM - SOURCE: KOMO-TV ABC 4 and Radio 1000