Fatigue is a threat to safety for EMS personnel, their patients and the public. A project team led by NHTSA, NASEMSO and industry experts created guidelines for fatigue mitigation based on the best available evidence, released in 2019.
Safety
Protecting the health and safety of EMS practitioners and their patients
People nationwide expect and deserve EMS systems that avoid risk of harm to EMS workers, patients and the communities they serve. Accordingly, NHTSA’s Office of EMS is working closely with Federal partners, State officials and a broad variety of related stakeholders to develop a culture in which safety considerations and risk awareness permeate the full spectrum of EMS activities and decisions.
Our efforts include advancing EMS safety through partnership with Federal and stakeholder associations, advancing ground ambulance safety, and helping protect the EMS workforce by improving injury surveillance and safety among EMS providers, among other high-profile projects.
EMS Workforce Safety
NHTSA has partnered with the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) to improve injury surveillance by collecting nationally representative data about line-of-duty injuries within EMS. NHTSA also supported the development of Guidelines for State Adoption: EMS Workforce Planning and Development. Learn more from EMS.gov
Advancing Ambulance Safety
NHTSA collaborates with national organizations & Federal partners to provide EMS leaders with the traffic crash data, research, and resources needed to promote improvements in ground ambulance safety.
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Fatigue in EMS
Strategy for a National EMS Culture of Safety
Through a three-year cooperative agreement with the EMS for Children Program (EMSC) and the American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP), NHTSA supported the EMS community’s development this culture of safety document.