Orlando, FL -- Speaking at the 34th Annual ClinCon Conference at The Rosen Centre Hotel in Orlando, FL, on Friday, July 11, Florida-based EMS Medical Director Dr. Mary Ann Kolar astounded physicians and EMS professionals with a presentation on the impressive results of the Induced Hypothermia treatment protocol of post cardiac arrest patients in Citrus County, Florida. The presentation by Dr Mary Ann Kolar and Chief Training Officer, Jane Bedford, RN, CCP included a report on Nature Coast EMS's treatment results citing the national average of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest patients that regain a pulse is 6.4% as reported by the American Heart Association, in Citrus County, 27% of cardiac arrest patients regain a pulse in the care of Nature Coast EMS. A patient experiencing a cardiac arrest in Citrus County has a 4 times greater chance of surviving than a patient experiencing a cardiac arrest somewhere else. For the patients that remained in coma after experiencing an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest that met the guidelines for induced hypothermia, 100% of these patients have walked out of the hospital, neurologically intact.

This simple treatment is able to bring a patient from a virtually unrecoverable condition of coma after an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest to waking up and going home. Richard Greenman and Paul Russell, two survivors, spoke to the group in an effort to encourage the physicians and EMS professionals to bring this life-saving treatment to their local EMS services and hospitals. "I just want to say 'Thank You' for what you do," said survivor Paul Russell. Mr Russell is now back at work at Publix after experiencing a cardiac arrest at home in March. Both men shared their experiences and said they only have short term memory loss related to the day of their cardiac arrests.

Nature Coast EMS was the first EMS service in Florida to offer the ICE protocol in partnership with Citrus Memorial Hospital, the first rural hospital in the nation to offer induced hypothermia for post cardiac arrest patients.

The ClinCon Conference is designed to create an educational experience that will help EMS Personnel provide the highest quality prehospital care to their patients.

Nature Coast EMS is the sole provider of advanced life support in Citrus County, located north of Tampa on Florida's nature coast.

For more information on ICE please contact:

Jane Bedford, RN, CCP
Chief Training Officer
Nature Coast Emergency Medical Service
3380 E Gulf to Lake Highway
Inverness, Fl 34453
Office: 352-746-5422
Email: JaneB@naturecoastems.org

Related:

• Sept. 2008 Cover Report: Raising the Dead