Ambulance Diversion
In an ideal world, EMS agencies should always deliver patients to the nearest medical facility. But in reality, nearest is not always an option. Hospitals sometimes face serious shortages of the staff and space resources they need to provide emergency care.
Hospital administrators, when faced with a serious shortage of resources, alert EMS providers of their status using EMSystem -- a web-based program that provides real-time information on patient capacity, available beds and specialized treatment capabilities.
MARCER, working with a select group of physicians, nurses and hospital administrators put together by the Missouri Hospital Association/Health Alliance of Mid-America, has developed ambulance diversion guidelines (Updated March 2007) for the greater Kansas City metropolitan area. These guidelines are designed to accommodate the interests of both hospitals and EMS agencies, while keeping patient care and safety the number one priority.
Diversion Reports
- Hospital Key List -- this Word document provides a key to the letters used to represent each hospital.
- Hours on Diversion Spreadsheet -- this Excel spreadsheet shows the total hours on diversion for each hospital by month for the past six months.
- EMS Aggregate Bar Chart -- this Excel chart shows the total hours on diversion for all Kansas City area hospitals by time of day for the last month.
- Hours on Trauma Diversion -- this Excel spreadsheet shows the total hours on diversion for trauma departments in Kansas City area hospitals for the past six months.
- EMS Catchement Area Matrices -- this Excel spreadsheet shows the hours on diversion by time of day, by hospital and for cachement areas (north, south, east and west) for the last month.
- Instructions for using the diversion reports.
April 2008
- Hospital Key List
- Hours on Diversion Spreadsheet
- EMS Aggregate Bar Chart
- Hours on Trauma Diversion
- EMS Catchement Area Matrices
March 2008
- Hospital Key List
- Hours on Diversion Spreadsheet
- EMS Aggregate Bar Chart
- Hours on Trauma Diversion
- EMS Catchement Area Matrices
February 2008
- Hospital Key List
- Hours on Diversion Spreadsheet
- EMS Aggregate Bar Chart
- Hours on Trauma Diversion
- EMS Catchement Area Matrices
January 2008
- Hospital Key List
- Hours on Diversion Spreadsheet
- EMS Aggregate Bar Chart
- Hours on Trauma Diversion
- EMS Catchement Area Matrices