That’s why they are excited about new technology that will provide doctors at Banner Del E. Webb Medical Center with swift and detailed information about a patient’s condition before arriving at the hospital.

When firefighters are called to assist someone with a heart attack, they need only connect the person to a Medtronic Lifepak monitor and press a button to communicate a patient’s condition to hospital staff.

Alerts are sent to doctors’ smartphones and hospital computers. Included is a detailed chart of the patient’s heart rhythms. By the time firefighters deliver the patient to the hospital, the hospital is prepared. Hospital staff can bypass a diagnosis and begin treating the patient when he or she is rolled into the emergency room or cardiac catheterization lab.

Previously, firefighters described the patient’s condition to a doctor who would assess the patient upon arrival, slowing down the treatment process.

“The earlier we open up the artery, the more muscle we can save,” said Manoj Rawal, chief cardiologist at Del E. Webb. “It can make a huge difference.”

Stan Garretson, 74, says he is proof.

The Nebraska resident was visiting his sister in Surprise recently when he awakened with chest pains. Garretson’s wife, Ellen, called 911.

Four firefighters from Station 301 in east Surprise arrived and hooked Garretson up to the monitor and hospital staff received notifications seconds later, said Nathan Lewis, pre-hospital coordinator for Del E. Webb.

Everyone was ready when Garretson arrived at the hospital on Feb. 24. The new technology meant Garretson got the most necessary treatment about 15 minutes earlier than he would have in the past, Rawal said…. (more…)