Sensitivity of OHCA recognition in the emergency dispatch center of Subotica

Introduction: Dispatch centre plays the key role, as the first link in the survival chain by recognizing an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA), good triage and accordingly, by the adequate response time of the emergency medical team. The aim of the work: analysis of the sensitivity of sudden cardiac arrest calls received at dispatch centre by the dispatcher of the Emergency Medical Service Subotica. Method: Retrospective analysis of the call receiving protocols and comparison with the medical protocols of the Emergency Medical Service (EMS) Subotica, for the period from January 1st, 2016 till December 31st, 2016. Results: The total number of calls received for medical teams was 10,172,during 2016 in the EMS Subotica. In the observed period, 116 OHCA (1.14% of total calls) were confirmed by medical teams, on the field, while CPR was initiated in 110 cases (1,08% ). 68 cases of OHCA were recognized at receiving the calls by the dispatcher, that were issued as the first order of emergency, 48 OHCA were not recognized at calls, however, 16 (16/48) of the calls were issued as the first order of emergency, while the other 32 (32/48) were the second order of emergency. The Sensitivity of calls of recognizing OHCA was 58,62 - 71,41%. No results were obtained for specificity, due to the lack of data in the records. Conclusion : Dispatch centre is the most important link in the chain of care for critically ill patients. There is a need for a unique way of documenting data. Recognition of OHCA by the dispatcher should become a parameter of the measure for the quality of emergency medical assistance work.