The next webinar in EMS Focus: A Collaborative Federal Webinar Series will take place Thursday, February 19, at 12 p.m. Eastern. This free webinar will include information about why the First Responder Network Authority (FirstNet) effort to build a public safety broadband network is important to EMS systems across the nation.
The webinar will feature presentations by Kevin McGinnis, a FirstNet Board member and Amanda Hilliard, Director of Outreach for FirstNet. McGinnis is chief of community paramedicine at Maine’s North East Mobile Health Services and is a nationally recognized advocate for broadband communications within the emergency medical services (EMS) community.
Together, McGinnis and Hilliard will outline the expected benefits of the proposed network for the EMS community and provide an overview of current FirstNet activities, including consultation with the public safety community. Potential benefits of the network are expected to include accessing and sharing patient information in addition to real-time monitoring of vitals, both of which have the potential to help EMS providers make better treatment, field, and operational decisions.
“With a firm grasp of the positive impact the proposed broadband network can have on patient care, and an understanding of the current planning process, the EMS community will be able to take advantage of available opportunities to provide input to FirstNet,” said Drew Dawson, Director of NHTSA’s Office of EMS.
Attendees will be encouraged to participate in an open question-and-answer session, with the webinar and Q&A lasting approximately one hour. Every other month, the EMS Focus webinar series will provide a venue to discuss critical initiatives, issues, and challenges for EMS stakeholders nationwide.