Newsletter

• Newsletter - Winter 2007
• Newsletter - Summer 2007 (posted August 9th, 2007)
• timesunion.com news  (posted July 21, 2007)
• Newsletter - Spring 2007  (posted March 2007)

Newsletter, Winter 2007

The 2007 EMS EXPO/NAEMT General Meeting held in Orlando, Florida, was a very busy time for PHTLS.  The events began with the preconference PHTLS Instructor/Transition course attended by approximately 30 people.  The course was presented by the PHTLS EC as well as several Affiliate Faculty members.  Special thanks to Chad MacIntyre and Trauma One for providing the equipment for the course, as well as sponsoring the luncheon for the participants.

The PHTLS Annual Meeting was attended by both domestic and international delegates.  The Executive Council reported on current activities, including progress of the 6th edition since the 2006 Rollout.  The meeting also provided the EC with an opportunity to confer and discuss plans as work begins for the upcoming 7th edition.  It was a very productive meeting and all the input and discussion contributed by the attending delegates was greatly appreciated.  If anyone has further information, thoughts or ideas to relate, please do forward a note to a member of the Executive Council (contact information for all EC members are listed on the PHTLS Web site).

A special note of thanks to Dr. Francis Levy, medical director for PHTLS-France. 

"Dr. Levy was instrumental in bringing PHTLS into France and continues to push forward to improve prehospital care in France.  He guided translations of the 5th and 6th editions into French and the texts are used in several countries that have French speakers." said PHTLS Chair Will Chapleau.  "Following Katrina, Dr. Levy found himself stranded at the New Orleans Airport, where he worked with arriving responders to set up a hospital and continued to assist in treating patients and assisting in their transfer out of New Orleans." 

Thank you, Dr. Levy, for yur important work for PHTLS and the community at large.
Note:  Dr. Levy's "Cynanide poisoning" presentation can be found on the Website at: http://www.naemt.org/PHTLS/resourceLibrary/2007+Expo+Notes.htm

Several awards were presented at the various events held during the conference.  Please join us in congratulating the following individuals for their efforts and dedication:

PHTLS Appreciation Awards:
Jennifer Ashcraft - Arkansas
Deanna Moore - Tennessee
Ruth Dyson - United Kingdom
Claudia Borioli - Sweden
Dra Ana Maria Montanez Mendoza - Peru
Cathie Hedges - Ontario, Canada
Debra Kitchens - Georgia
Saud Al Turki - Saudi Arabia
Chad MacIntyre - Florida
Brad Pierson - Illinois
Mark Leuder - Illinois

PHTLS Military Service Award:
Keith Cox, Joint Special Operations Medical Training Center - Ft. Bragg, NC

Scott B.Frame Memorial Lecture Award:
Osvaldo Rois,MD - Argentina

Scott B.Frame Service Award:
Josh Vayer

Norman E.McSwain Jr. Leadership Award:
Jeffrey P. Salomone,MD - Atlanta, Georgia

Scott B. Frame,MD,FACS,FCCM,EMT-P, served as medical director for PHTLS from 1994 until 2001, when he died after a battle with cancer.  In his honor, the Scott B. Frame Memorial Educational Fund was set up to facilitate a sponsored lecture every year.  This year's Scott B. Frame Memorial Lecture was presented by Osvaldo Rois,MD, PHTLS Coordinator-Argentina/Regional Coordinator-Latin America. (Rois's presentation is available on the PHTLS Web site at: http://www.naemt.org/PHTLS/resourceLibrary/2007+Expo+Notes.htm

In other news, International Faculty traveled to Germany and Pakistan in October to facilitate programs.  Several programs for the Philippines, Brunei and Costa Rica are planned for the new year.

The Executive Council will be meeting again in December to engage in further work needed as part of the strategic planning process.  If you have any suggestions for the EC to utilize as part of this endeavor, please be sure to contact a member of the EC with your thoughts.

A portable display is now available for use at state/provincial conferences and events.  If you are interested in utilizing this display, please contact Corine Curd at the PHTLS office for information.

From all of us on the PHTLS Executive Council and staff, we end the 2007 year grateful to all of you for your efforts through PHTLS to better the outcomes of trauma patients all over the world.  Best regards to you and your families during the holiday season, and best wishes for the upcoming year.

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Newsletter, Summer 2007

The PHTLS Executive Council (EC) met in Atlanta for a midyear meeting in May. The EC was delighted to have Norman E. McSwain, Jr., MD, attend after his [too long] absence due to illness. Also returning after a sojourn is Steve Mercer, who agreed to resume work with the EC as Education Coordinator – welcome back!

The EC would like to take this opportunity to thank Nita Ham and Melissa Alexander for their contributions to PHTLS as part of the EC, and especially for all of the work they accomplished for the 6th edition course.

Included within the meeting agenda was the assignment of various important roles for PHTLS. We have a new Regional Coordinator appointed for Region 1. Mike Hunter of Massachusetts has agreed to take on the role. Puerto Rico has a new Coordinator and Medical Director, Juan Calderon and Dr. Q. Manuel Canario, respectively. And the following report from Region 3:

“PHTLS Region 3 saw a change in state coordinator for both Arizona and Idaho. Kathy Stelfox, the Arizona state coordinator, served since 2003 and provided assistance to her PHTLS instructors assuring their success and the continued development of PHTLS in Arizona. She assisted in the transition of Chris Burrows into the new SC position.
Idaho state coordinator Stephanie Hillius also served her state since 2003, providing Idaho with a conscientious approach to continued growth and implementation of PHTLS. She is being succeeded by Jeff Bates as the new state coordinator and is assisting in the transition.
We wish both state coordinators leaving their positions the very best of luck and welcome the new state coordinators to their position assuring the continuation of progress in their states. Both new SCs have a very active past history with PHTLS both as instructors and coordinators.” – Craig Jacobus – Region 3 Coordinator

In Canada, Sally Downes has been appointed as the Coordinator for Manitoba. Contact information for all of these individuals is available on the Web site.

Preparations are being made to build new International program sites in Poland, scheduled for July; Lithuania in November; Germany in September and Costa Rica before the end of the year. These courses are being facilitated by both EC and International Faculty who have agreed to lend their expertise as part of the team.

The EC is continuing its work to refine the PHTLS program by soliciting feedback from Faculty and course participants. Please participate in this process and let us know how the program and materials are working for you; notices will be posted on the listservs periodically asking for your comments, ideas, etc.

Additional materials are being developed to enhance the basic PHTLS program as well; these will include online mini-courses, additional teaching tools and podcasts. Podcasting, in particular, is quickly becoming a popular method of delivering information and education to a wide audience, and at low cost to both producer and user.

The PHTLS EC members see podcasting as a unique opportunity to share the philosophies and science behind PHTLS. Podcasts first became available for download in June at www.PHTLSpodcast.com and www.apple.com/itunes.

Additional materials are being developed to enhance the basic PHTLS program as well: Mini-courses and podcasts will soon be offered off the Web site.

The NAEMT Annual Meeting and EMS EXPO are taking place in Orlando from October 9 to 13, 2007. PHTLS will host the following events:
• October 10, 8 am to 5 pm: PHTLS Instructor/Transition Course
• October 11, 9 am to noon: PHTLS Annual Meeting
• October 11, 3 pm: Scott Frame Memorial Lecture - This year's Scott Frame Lecture is entitled “The History of PHTLS in Latin America,” presented by Dr. Osvaldo Rois
Please join us at these events, and utilize these forums to let us know how to serve you better. –Mary-Ann Clarkes

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Story posted on timesunion.com:

EMTs sharpen skills in handling trauma  
First published: Tuesday, July 10, 2007
 
GUILDERLAND -- Emergency medical technicians from Western Turnpike Rescue Squad recently spent 16 hours of their weekend receiving advanced training in PreHospital Trauma Life Support.
  
PreHospital Trauma Life Support, or PHTLS, is an internationally known trauma course sponsored by the National Association of EMTs. It is designed to reduce disability and death from pre-hospital trauma through concentrated training of EMTs.

The course emphasizes the need for excellent basic life support in the first few minutes of care during a traumatic injury and expedient ambulance transport to a trauma center.

The course was taught by Western Turnpike Rescue Squad PHTLS instructors and members of Albany Medical Center's Emergency Medical Outreach office..

Western Turnpike Rescue Squad emergency responders spent June 23-24 training with hands-on, real-life scenarios and attending lectures by Albany Medical Center's Level-One Trauma Center physicians, nurses and paramedic staff. Topics included airway management, shock management, pediatric and elderly trauma care, and spinal/brain trauma, among others.

"I am proud that our members volunteered this much time out of their lives in order to take additional training to expand their education as emergency responders," said Howard E. Huth III, chief of Western Turnpike Rescue Squad.

Western Turnpike is a volunteer-based, 68-year-old ambulance service that provides emergency medical service to the residents of Guilderland and North Bethlehem Fire District. 

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Newsletter - Spring 2007

The PHTLS 6th edition Rollout held in Las Vegas in October 2006 was the first of about 150 updates that have been held, involving a total of 828 participants. Thank you to all State/Regional/Military/National Coordinators whom have made it a priority to update local Course Coordinators.

There were some significant changes made to the PHTLS course, one of these being the new Optional Course Schedule developed to help facilitate those sites who wanted to optimize their Instructor utilization. The EC is interested in hearing from those sites who have now utilized the Optional Schedule, to learn what their experience has been. Any feedback that you may have regarding the 6th edition text, 6th edition Instructor text, 6th edition course or any other comments you wish to share would be greatly appreciated.
The PHTLS EC is planning a Midyear meeting and would like to present your comments, thoughts and ideas. Please forward anything you’d like to have presented to phtls@naemt.org 

As a reminder, all State/Provincial Coordinators should be preparing status reports to submit to their Regional/National Coordinator, to be utilized at the EC Midyear meeting. Information regarding the reporting is available in the 6th edition Instructor text, or if you require assistance with these, please contact your Regional Coordinator/National Coordinator. 

International PHTLS continues to grow, with new course sites setting up in South Africa in March, and Poland and Lithuania between March and June. Please join me in thanking Zehra’ Al-Halali for all of her work with Saudi Arabia PHTLS. Al-Halali is leaving the PHTLS position in March; a new Coordinator will be posted on the website at that time.