Phelps Hospital Employs Mobile Phone App For Emergency Prep

SLEEPY HOLLOW, NY — A new mobile communications tool will help emergency medical services and Phelps Hospital share vital information quickly and more accurately before a patient arrives at the ER.

Phelps Hospital began using Twiage this month so the emergency department staff and specialist physicians can have a real-time conversation with EMS personnel to clarify necessary information for things like strokes and heart attacks.

Prior to Twiage, EMS personnel used a cell phone or radio to relay information about an incoming patient. At Phelps, one of the emergency nurses would receive the call and then notify the rest of the medical team.

In contrast, Twiage can send alerts five to 10 minutes earlier than a typical phone or radio call. Clinicians, armed with patient information in advance, can prepare and map out of course of action before the patient arrives.

According to a major trauma center, that was an early Twiage adopter, an average case can be entered in 30 seconds as opposed to the two minutes it takes to initiate a radio call.

“As an ER doctor for more than 25 years, timely and accurate information is critical to saving the life of an incoming patient,” said Barry Geller, M.D., chairman of the emergency department at Phelps Hospital. “Twiage allows EMS personnel to send photos, EKGs or videos in real-time, allowing our emergency medical unit to be better prepared ahead of when a patient arrives.

“We are in the business of saving lives, and this is a powerful tool that I’m excited to have at our disposal,” he said.