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Medical personnel serving victims of the conflict in Gaza are dealing with a logistical nightmare in caring for thousands reportedly injured in the ongoing war zone. Because of the violence and terrorism checkpoints, Red Crescent paramedics report transport times of several hours.

On Wednesday, Israel and Hamas observed a three-hour pause in fighting to allow the delivery of humanitarian aid, and additional lulls will occur in the future, Israel said.

Read more about this world crisis at Ambulance Trip from Gaza a Harrowing Ride.

In the U.S this week, eight people were killed and a ninth was critically injured after a helicopter crash Sunday about 100 miles southwest of New Orleans.

The helicopter was operated by PHI, a primary service flying to oil and gas platforms along the coast of Louisiana. PHI also flies medical helicopters, and in June lost a medical chopper in a Texas crash that killed four: a pilot, paramedic, nurse and a patient who was being transported from Huntsville to Houston.

Read more at Eight Killed in Louisiana Helicopter Crash.

Following a new protocol, San Francisco's 911 Call Center has reduced the time it takes to process emergency medical calls and get responders on the scene.

In November 2007 dispatchers were instructed to immediately send help to callers reporting priority symptoms, while a previous policy required them to gather further information first.

Read more at San Francisco Reduces 911 Response Time.

Exclusive on EMSResponder.com:

EMS Equipment and Transport Vehicle Cleaning and Disinfection: Challenges & Best Practices

"Emergency medical systems teams are constantly faced with challenges of preventing infection transmission," writes author Jean Fleming.

"The emergence of antimicrobial-resistant microbes (e.g., healthcare-acquired and community-acquired methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus [MRSA], vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus [VRE] and multidrug-resistant Gram-negative bacilli), along with growing concern regarding the spread of Clostridia difficile bacteria are problems facing all healthcare providers.

Featured Column:

Good Samaritan Immunity Limited to Medical Assistance

Following the December California Supreme Court ruling that a well-intentioned Good Samaritan could be held legally accountable for her actions, fire/EMS attorney Larry Bennett weighs in. "Fortunately in most states, the courts have broadly interpreted their "Good Samaritan" statutes, thereby encouraging people to stop and render emergency care while awaiting fire and EMS responders," he writes. "Unfortunately, the California Supreme Court has gone the other way. Hopefully this decision does not lead to litigation in other states against Good Samaritans."

Featured Job:

Director/Chief, Emergency Medical Services (EMS) - Atlantic City, NJ

"At AtlantiCare, a rapidly growing health system on the South Jersey Coast, we firmly believe that it takes 'more than medicine to build a healthy community.' Every member of our team affects our reputation as the region's health care leader, whether in a direct care role or providing customer service and behind-the-scenes support."

Click above for details and visit www.EMSResponder.com/jobs for additional listings.

Sign up here to receive the new EMS Jobs e-newsletter.

Featured Forum Thread:

Lets do something productive...

"I want everyone here to come up with 'thinking outside the box' treatments, writes emscheetah. He lists a number of suggestions and ends, "I have many more but didnt want to make the post too long..... Hope this is productive."

Click to read this popular discussion, or browse other topics at www.emsresponder.com/forums.

Poll Question:

How do you feel about the economy as related to EMS jobs and budgets going into 2009?

Click to participate, and view previous polls at www.EMSResponder.com/polls.

Reminders:

EMSResponder.com is now on Facebook

We invite you to stop by our new page, leave us a note, and sign up as a fan.

Free Posters

Two posters are available from EMSResponder.com for free and unlimited distribution. Click to open the PDFs for the E2B Challenge poster and the ICARE poster.

To learn more about these topics visit www.EMSResponder.com/e2b and Do You Care Enough to ICARE?

Other top headlines this week on EMSResponder.com:

• North Carolina Paramedics Get Muscle Cars to Respond
• Ambulance Stolen from Maryland Hospital
• Report: Most MI Patients Not Given Pre-Hospital ECG
• Woman Says Florida Hospital Left Knife in her Head
• Report: New Mexico MedEvac Pilot Was Confused
• New York Ambulance Treasurer Pleads Guilty

About Heather Caspi, EMSResponder.com Editor-in-Chief
Heather Caspi has been a public safety journalist since 2000, beginning as a reporter for sister site Firehouse.com. She later became the assistant news editor for Firehouse.com and Officer.com, and led the launch of EMSResponder.com in 2005. She graduated from the University of Maryland with degrees in Journalism and English Language and Literature, and earned her EMT-B at Merritt College in Oakland, California. She can be reached at Heather.Caspi@cygnusb2b.com.