Methodology of a Cross-sectional Study Evaluating the Impact of a Novel Mobile Care Team on the Prevalence of Ambulatory Care Sensitive Conditions Presenting to Emergency Medical Services

Introduction Hospitalization due to ambulatory care sensitive conditions (ACSC) is often used as a proxy measure for access to primary care. The prevalence of ACSC has not been measured in the prehospital setting. Emergency medical services (EMS) are being used by patients who lack access to primary care for ACSC. Many novel models of care have been implemented within Canada and internationally, utilizing paramedics to ease the burden of poor primary care access. Recently, a mobile care team (MCT) consisting of a paramedic/nurse configuration has been deployed in the community of New Waterford, Nova Scotia. The team responds to low acuity 911 calls and follow-up appointments booked by primary care clinicians. This study will identify the prevalence of patients with ACSC presenting to EMS before and after the implementation of MCT and the differences after the implementation of the MCT. Methods Secondary data will be collected from the centralized EMS electronic patient care report (ePCR) database. All patients presenting to the ground ambulance with ACSC during the year prior to MCT implementation, all patients presenting to the ground ambulance with ACSC during the year post-MCT implementation, and all patients presenting to the MCT with ACSC will be included for analysis, allowing for a calculation of ACSC prevalence. Descriptive methods will be used for age, sex, primary care practitioner, and ASCS complaints. Prevalence data will be compared via the chi-squared test. A subgroup analysis of age, sex, and individual presenting conditions will also be analyzed using the chi-squared test. Confounding will be dealt with via multivariate logistic regression. Results The study results are pending; however, a literature review reveals a paucity of data on ACSC in EMS. Conclusions Due to the paucity of literature surrounding ACSC prevalence in EMS, the methodology developed to study these prevalence rates is a novel protocol of importance to prehospital research and the epidemiology of ACSC more broadly.