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Differences in Cardiovascular Health Metrics in Emergency Medical Technicians Compared to Paramedics: A Cross-Sectional Study of Emergency Medical Services Professionals

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  29 April 2019

Rebecca E. Cash ,
Remle P. Crowe ,
Julie K. Bower ,
Randi E. Foraker  and
Ashish R. Panchal
Rebecca E. Cash*
Affiliation:
National Registry of Emergency Medical Technicians, Columbus, OhioUSA Division of Epidemiology, The Ohio State University College of Public Health, Columbus, OhioUSA
Remle P. Crowe
Affiliation:
National Registry of Emergency Medical Technicians, Columbus, OhioUSA Division of Epidemiology, The Ohio State University College of Public Health, Columbus, OhioUSA
Julie K. Bower
Affiliation:
Division of Epidemiology, The Ohio State University College of Public Health, Columbus, OhioUSA
Randi E. Foraker
Affiliation:
School of Medicine, Institute for Informatics, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MissouriUSA
Ashish R. Panchal
Affiliation:
National Registry of Emergency Medical Technicians, Columbus, OhioUSA Division of Epidemiology, The Ohio State University College of Public Health, Columbus, OhioUSA Department of Emergency Medicine, The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, Columbus, OhioUSA
*
Correspondence: Rebecca E. Cash, MPH, NRP 6610 Busch Blvd Columbus, Ohio 43229 USA E-mail: [email protected]
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Abstract

Background:

Emergency Medical Services (EMS) professionals face high physical demands in high-stress settings; however, the prevalence of cardiovascular health (CVH) risk factors in this health care workforce has not been explored. The primary objective of this study was to compare the distribution of CVH and its individual components between a sample of emergency medical technicians (EMTs) and paramedics. The secondary objective was to identify associations between demographic and employment characteristics with ideal CVH in EMS professionals.

Methods:

A cross-sectional survey based on the American Heart Association’s (AHA; Dallas, Texas USA) Life’s Simple 7 (LS7) was administered to nationally-certified EMTs and paramedics. The LS7 components were scored according to previously described cut points (ideal = 2; intermediate = 1; poor = 0). A composite CVH score (0-10) was calculated from the component scores, excluding cholesterol and blood glucose due to missing data. Multivariable logistic regression was used to estimate odds ratios (OR; 95% CI) for demographic and employment characteristics associated with optimal CVH (≥7 points).

Results:

There were 24,708 respondents that were currently practicing and included. More EMTs achieved optimal CVH (n = 4,889; 48.8%) compared to paramedics (n = 4,338; 40.6%). Factors associated with higher odds of optimal CVH included: higher education level (eg, college graduate or more: OR = 2.26; 95% CI, 1.97-2.59); higher personal income (OR = 1.26; 95% CI, 1.17-1.37); and working in an urban versus rural area (OR = 1.31; 95% CI, 1.23-1.40). Paramedic certification level (OR = 0.84; 95% CI, 0.78-0.91), older age (eg, 50 years or older: OR = 0.65; 95% CI, 0.58-0.73), male sex (OR = 0.54; 95% CI, 0.50-0.56), working for a non-fire-based agency (eg, private service: OR = 0.68; 95% CI, 0.62-0.74), and providing medical transport service (OR = 0.81; 95% CI, 0.69-0.94) were associated with lower odds of optimal CVH.

Conclusions:

Several EMS-related characteristics were associated with lower odds of optimal CVH. Future studies should focus on better understanding the CVH and metabolic risk profiles for EMS professionals and their association with incident cardiovascular disease (CVD), major cardiac events, and occupational mortality.

Cash RE, Crowe RP, Bower JK, Foraker RE, Panchal AR. Differences in cardiovascular health metrics in emergency medical technicians compared to paramedics: a crosssectional study of Emergency Medical Services professionals. Prehosp Disaster Med. 2019;34(3):288–296.

Keywords

cardiovascular healthEmergency Medical Servicesemergency medical techniciansparamedics
Type
Original Research
Information
Prehospital and Disaster Medicine , Volume 34 , Issue 3 , June 2019 , pp. 288 - 296
Copyright
© World Association for Disaster and Emergency Medicine 2019 

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