Cypress Creek EMS in Scottsdale, Arizona, recently announced they are deploying about 100 body worn cameras on Paramedics and Paramedic Supervisors in part, according to the story in PRNNewswire, to "improve clinical practice and enhance evidence-based research" and I LOVE this idea.The years I spent in the risk management/CQI/Research chair constantly had me chasing odd complaints from the public about demeanor, care received that didn't match the PCR...heck you name it and I took it down. Then I had to pull the chart, pull the AVL data, track down the crews and find out what really happened. Sometimes hours would be spent chasing folks down to learn something a camera in the rig or on the medic would have shown right away. It would clear far more complaints than it would make I'd wager.
Let's address a few concerns right away:
We already know Private EMS, as well as some public EMS agencies, have used dash and cabin cameras to punish crews rather than guide best practices. It is a fair argument to assume they will do the same with body camera footage. That taken into account I'm still 100% for getting this technology into EMS for no other reason than to show exactly what we deal with on a daily basis. How amazing will it be to attach a video file to your EHR so that the hospital can see the patient's living conditions, their initial complaint and everything that took place in the ambulance!
Think just about your high risk refusals for a moment. Video proof that the patient was able to answer questions and articulate their reason for refusing. No more QI and MD follow up weeks later about a chart that went wrong when the patient complains...it's all right there on video.
It will be misused. We have folks in our ranks stealing narcotics, yet the benefits of stocking it outweigh the risks of deployment. I think the same can be said about body cameras.
I know my brothers in blue are mixed on wearing cameras but I've seen some footage here and there that, without having seen something with my own eyes, I would not have believed it.
So how will it work? Will the cameras only activate when your unit arrives on scene? Will hitting that button on your MDT be like PD pulling their tazers?
If you're against cameras...how do you feel about audio recording?
We are WAY past complaining about privacy issues when the vast majority of what we do comes from a good place only to be misinterpreted by an unknowing public and a dismissive greater medical community?
The days of defending a PCR in court because the patient recalls something different than you do from a call 2 years old would be gone. Your QI would simply play the video.
Can we still bicker about the "the video doesn't tell the whole story" argument that some Officers use when caught doing something weird? Perhaps, but reviewing the video for clinical signs of injury, clinical interventions, provider safety (He was mean and hit me was a common complaint at my desk at QI) and an overall better documentation of care far outweighs any concerns I think you can come up with.
What say you? Is it time to get cameras into EMS? Why? Why not? You can even buy them on Amazon and for not such ridiculous prices either: $140 is a bargain!
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