AIS User Manual

Utah Department of Health/Bureau of Emergency Medical Services

AUTOMATED INCIDENT SYSTEM (AIS) USER DOCUMENTATION
(DOS PowerBasic/Btrieve Program - version 2.0)

INTRODUCTION

This documentation is intended for use with the Automated Incident System (AIS) software written by the Utah Department of Health, Bureau of Emergency Medical Services. The AIS software is part of the EMS Prehospital Management System package, which also includes a Continuing Medical Education (CME) database. The Incident and CME Systems are designed to be used together; however, each system will function by itself.

The Incident System is designed to make the collection, reporting and archiving of information about emergency medical incidents easier through the use of your personal computer system. The software ensures the correct type of information Is collected and provides an easy method for providing required Information to the Bureau of Emergency Medical ServIces.

The Incident System consists of three main database files:

The Incident file contains data on each ambulance run made by your organization. Runs are identified by Incident Number and Year or Patient Name.

The Codes file contains codes that are used in conjunction with the incident Report Form, such as Medication Codes and Destination Codes.

The EMT file contains data on each paramedic, EMT, doctor and nurse that is affiliated with your organization. They are identified by Name and Number. The EMT file is shared between the CME and Incident System. When running the Incident System, you will only be required to enter Paramedic/EMT Name, Number and Level. In CME, additional Paramedic/EMT information related to training can be entered.

SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS

Following is a list of the minimum equipment required to run the Incident System software:

• IBM or compatible personal computer (PC) (80286 or faster)
• 640K of RAM
• One floppy disk drive (3.5 or 5.25 inch)
• One hard disk drive, preferably 120 MB or larger
• DOS 5.0 or later
• Attached printer

ADDITIONAL TECHNICAL SUPPORT

This documentation assumes a basic understanding of the PC and its operation. It is intended as a quick reference source, without going into extensive detail. Any questions or problems encountered should be directed to the Bureau of EMS. Please contact the Bureau at 273-6666.

The program is equipped to handle several common error conditions, such as a printer out of paper or a disk drive door not closed. If a more serious error occurs, a message similar to the following will be displayed:

"An error has occurred in the program. So that the problem can be diagnosed and corrected, please supply the following information to the Bureau of EMS as soon as possible: . . ."

If you should see this message, please contact EMS and provide the information on the screen. It will also help if you report what you were doing just prior to the message. Every attempt will be made to solve the problem causing the error.

INSTALLATION OF INCIDENT SYSTEM SOFTWARE

This software replaces all earlier versions of the Incident System. You should not delete the old software and files, however, until the new version is running satisfactorily. The new software must NOT be installed in the same subdirectory as any earlier Incident software. If you will be running both the CME and Incident Systems, they must be installed in the same subdirectory. We suggest this subdirectory be named PREHOSP.

STEP I - If you have not previously installed the CME software, you will need to create a subdirectory on your hard drive (probably Drive C). To create a new subdirectory, go to DOS and to the root directory for Drive C. The prompt should appear as: C:~>

Type MKDIR PREHOSP.

STEP 2 - If you are already using the 1993 CME System, run the CME backup utility before installing the Incident System. Please see the CME System User Documentation for details.

STEP 3 - Use the CD (Change Directory) command to change to your Prehospital directory. EXAMPLE: CD PREHOSP.

Insert the disk containing the Incident System software into your floppy disk drive (Drive A or B).

For Drive A, enter the command: REPLACE A:*.* /A

For Drive B, enter the command: REPLACE B:*.* /A

WARNING! WARNING! DO NOT use the COPY command, as this will overwrite CME flies already installed! Be certain to include the "/A" switch (for drive A or B) on the end, as this prevents files which may already be installed from being overwritten.

Your Incident System software is now ready to run.

RUNNING THE INCIDENT SYSTEM

To run the Incident System software, follow these steps:

From the DOS prompt, type CD PREHOSP and press Enter.

Type EMSMENU and press Enter.

A menu will display allowing you to select either the CME or Incident Systems. To run the Incident System, type 2 and press Enter. Pressing the Esc key from this menu will return you to DOS.

NOTE: The incident System software can be added to a Menu System that you may be currently using. For assistance, please contact EMS for specific instructions.

ESTABLISHING A SECURITY PASSWORD

Since the Incident System contains confidential information, a password security feature has been included. Each person who accesses the Incident System must use the same password. A password security feature has also been provided for the CME System. If you plan to use both the CME and Incident System, different passwords can be used for each system.

The incident System is shipped with a startup password installed. The first thing you should do is change the startup password to your own unique password. To do so, follow these steps:

The screen should display, "TYPE YOUR SECURITY PASSWORD AND PRESS ENTER:" Type START and press the Enter key. So that the password can be kept private, you will not see the letters as you type. If you make a typing error, you can press the Backspace key and make a correction.

The Incident Main Menu will display. Select Utilities by typing 4 and pressing Enter. Select Change Security Password by typing 9 and press Enter.

Enter the startup password again by typing START and pressing Enter.

Now, choose your own unique password. The password must consist of five characters (letters or numbers). Try to choose something that would not be easily guessed by unauthorized personnel. Type In your choice and press Enter.

You will be asked to verify your selection. Type Y and press Enter.

You will be returned to the Utilities Menu. Press the Esc key to return to the Main Menu. Press Esc again to return to the MaIn Menu. One final press of Esc will return you to DOS or your menu system. You may now wish to try rerunning the system to verify that your new password works.

ESTABLISHING A DEFAULT SERVICE NUMBER

Before entering Incident information into the database, you will need to establish a default service number. The number you specify will automatically be added to every Incident record you save in the future.

IMPORTANT: If you will be entering data for more than one service, you will need to maintain a separate subdirectory, loaded with the complete Incident and CME software, for each service. Before setting up separate subdirectories, please contact the Bureau at 801.538.6435 to discuss your particular situation.

To establish your default service number, select Utilities from the Incident Main Menu. Then select 7, Set Default Service Number.

Follow the screen Instructions by typing in your service number. EXAMPLE: 1804L. The cursor moves to the name field. Type in the name of your organization. You can backspace to correct errors and move between the two fields by pressing Tab.

When you are satisfied with your entries, press the F2 key to save the information. "Record Saved" should display at the bottom of the screen. Press Esc to return to the Utilities Menu. Press Esc again to return to the Main Menu.

ENTERING CODES FOR YOUR ORGANIZATION

The last steps you will need to follow before beginning to enter incident information involve adding data pertinent to your organization to the code files.

From the Main Menu, select 2, Maintain Related Code Files. The Code Files Menu will display a list of 12 different types of codes that can be maintained. For now, you will need to work with just the first three; EMTs, Districts and Unit Permit Numbers.

ENTERING PARAMEDIC AND EMT INFORMATION

If you have already been using the CME System and have previously entered paramedics and EMTs into the CME database, you will already have completed this step (the EMT file is shared by the CME and Incident Systems). If not, you will need to enter information on each paramedic and EMT affiliated with your organization.

To enter paramedics and EMTs, select number 1 from the Code Files Menu. Blank fields are presented for EMT Last Name, First Name, Middle Initial, EMT Number and EMT Training Level. Enter the information for the first paramedic or EMT (They can be entered in any order). To move between the fields, press Enter, Tab or the Up and Down arrow keys.

If you have doctors andlor nurses that actually accompany you on your runs, you may include them in the EMT file by providing their name and a number. You must also specify a level of (Other). It is recommended that you use a number such as "180401" which is identical to the Unit Permit Number numbering scheme. The number should be entered in the EMT Number field. The first few digits must be identical to the first four digits of your Service License Number. The last 2 dIgits are a sequential number which you assign to each doctor or nurse. EXAMPLE: If you wish to add 3 nurses to the file, their numbers would be similar to the following: "180401", "180402" and "180403.". The number should be recorded on the third or fourth block where the EMT numbers are listed on the Incident Report Form.

When you have entered all the fields for an EMT, press the F2 key to save the record. "New Record Written" should display at the bottom of the screen. Press F5 to clear the old record before entering the next record.

The procedure for entering records is similar throughout the Incident and CME Systems. The procedure is explained in greater detail in the "Maintain Incident Database" section. For a summary of the function keys, please see the quick reference section at the end of the manual.

Following this procedure, enter all personnel into the database

ENTERING DISTRICTS

Your organization may divide its service area into sections for monitoring EMS activity. If so, you may enter a record for each district, consisting of a District Code and Description.

ENTERING UNIT PERMIT NUMBERS

The Bureau of EMS will assign a six-digit number for each emergency response vehicle in your agency. The first four digits of the number will be identical to the first four digits of the Service License Number. The last two digits will be different for each vehicle. A number of 01 will be given to the oldest vehicle. A number 02 will be given to the next oldest vehicle and so on. For example, the oldest vehicle in service 1804L would be assigned a Unit Permit Number of 180401. If you also use a different numbering scheme for your vehicles you may wish to include this number in the Description field of each Unit Permit Number record.

INCIDENT SYSTEM MENUS

The system is menu-driven. That means that to run a particular task, you select its description from a menu on the screen. Whenever a menu is displayed, you have two choices:

Select a menu item by typing its corresponding number and pressing the Enter key.

Press the Esc key. Pressing Esc will take you to the previous menu, back to DOS, or back to your menu system.

The system contains four menus: a Main Menu, a Code Files Menu, a Reports Menu and a Utilities Menu. The following sections contain descriptions of each of these menu items.

MAIN MENU ITEM 1 - MAINTAIN INCIDENT DATABASE

When you select this item, the first data entry screen for maintaining incident Information will be displayed. This is the first of four screens. Certain keys have been programmed for use when entering data or in looking up data already entered. For example, to move between the four data entry screens, press the PgUp and PgDn keys. Once you become familiar with the programmed function keys, running the system should be quite easy.

ENTERING A NEW RECORD

The information you enter will be stored in a computer file. The file is divided into records. Each record pertains to a single incident. There are four data entry screens for each record. These screens will facilitate data entry of the Incident Report Form. It is not necessary to save each of the four data entry screens before moving on to the next one. You may move freely between the four screens to fill in data, and save the record when you are done.

Try entering a new record (you can make it a practice record which can later be deleted).

Press F5. F5 is a function key, and can be found on the top row of the keyboard. Note that F5 is different from the number 5 key. Pressing F5 clears any record which may currently be on the screen. Always use F5 before entering a new record (except when using the method described later under "Entering Records Containing Similar Information").

Note the solid bar one line up from the bottom of the screen. This is a message line. When you press F5, the message, "No record on screen" should appear.

Each item of information on the screen Is called a field. The first field on the screen is labelled "INCIDENT NUMBER" and refers to the number assigned to a particular incident. There are several ways to move the cursor to the field you wish to enter:

Press the PgUp and PgDn keys to select one of the four data entry screens.

Press Enter or Tab. The cursor will move to the next field on the current screen. The cursor Is programmed to move logically through the associated fields of each screen.

Press Back Tab (on most keyboards, hold down Shift and press Tab). The cursor will move to the previous field on the screen.

Press the up and down arrow keys. The cursor will move to the previous or next line. This is a faster way to move a longer distance than with Enter and Tab.

Press Ctrl-up arrow and Ctri-down arrow (hold down the Ctrl key and press an arrow key). The cursor will move to the next screen section. This is a fast way to move to a particular section of the screen.

Several fields on the data entry screens (District for example) are code-lookup fields. When you enter a value in the field, your entry is verified by checking the associated code file. If your entry is found in the code file, the description of the code will automatically be displayed to the right of the code. If your entry is not found, the message "CODE NOT FOUND ON FILE" will display.

If the code is not found in the associated code file, you must either enter a code which is found in the file or blank out the Incorrect code (by pressing the space bar or Delete key).

Certain fields on the four screens must be correctly entered before you can save a record. Other fields may be left blank. Still others are required only if the incident record did not contain certain Dispatch, Disposition or Treatment Codes. If the record contains one of the following codes, it can be saved with patient-related data missing:

Dispatch Code 099	Cancelled Run
Disposition Code 05	Cancelled Before Arrival
Disposition Code 10	Cancelled After Arrival
Disposition Code 30	DOA at Scene
Disposition Code 50	Evaluated and Released against Medical Advice
Disposition Code 55	Evaluated and Released with Medical Advice
Disposition Code 60	Refused Care
Disposition Code 65	Transported Other Means
Treatment Code 540	Vitals Unaccessible

Following is a list of all the fields on the four screens, with a brief description. Those fields which are required are indicated with two asterisks. Those fields required only when the above codes are not used are indicated with a single asterisk.

FIELDS ON SCREEN 1

**INCIDENT NUMBER	The number assigned by your organization to the incident. If there is more than one patient involved in the incident, each patient must be given a unique. incident Number. When dealing with accidents involving multiple patients, be sure to create a seperate record for each patient involved in the accident. A shortcut for achieving this is described under 93Entering Records Containing Similar Information94, Incident Numbers can be reused each year. However, within any one calendar year, every Incident record must have a unique Incident Number. You may wish to use the format YY9999A, where YY is the Incident year and 9999 is a number which starts at 0001 and increments from there. Incidents with multiple patients can be identified by adding an 93A94, 93B94, 93C94, etc. to the end of the incident Number. For example, the Incident Number for the first patient could be 940001 and the second patient 940001A.
**INCIDENT DATE	The date on which the incident occurred, in MM/DD/YY format
**PATIENT LAST NAME	The Patient's Last Name. If the run was cancelled and there was no patient or a patient name is not known, an entry, such as "CANCELLED" or "UNKNOWN", must be made for this field.
PATIENT FIRST NAME	The patient's first name.
PATIENT INITIAL	The patient's middle initial
DISTRICT	The service area or section of your organization involved with the Incident.
UNIT PERMIT NO	The first four digits of your default Service License Number are automatically displayed. You need enter only the last two digits to complete the Unit Permit Number (such as 01, 02 or 03).
INCIDENT STREET	The street address or location where the incident occurred.
CITY	The city where the incident occurred.
*STATE	The abbreviation of the state where the incident occurred. Valid State Codes are UT, NV, AZ, ID, WY and CO.
ZIPCODE	The Zip Code where the incident occurred.
COUNTY	The County Code for the county where the incident occurred.
*LOCATION CODE	The Location Code for the location where the incident occurred.
*PATIENT SOURCE	The Patient Source Code. (Same as Destination Codes). This code is used to show the origination point of the patient. If the patient was picked up at home. This Patient Source Code would be 040 Home (See Destination Codes).

FIELDS ON SCREEN 2

**DISPATCH CODE	The Dispatch Code.
**DISPATCH DATE	This field is automatically filled in with the Incident Date from Screen 1. You may change the date if necessary by typing over the automatic date. However, the Dispatch Date must not be prior to the Incident Date or more than one day after the Incident Date. To accept the automatic Dispatch Date, simply press Tab, Enter or the down arrow.
TIMES	All time fields should be entered in 24-hour (military) format. The correct range is 00:01 to 24:00 (midnight).
INCIDENT REPORTED	The time when the incident was initially reported.
DISPATCH NOTIFIED	The time when the dispatch office was notified.
**DISPATCHED	The time the unit was dispatched.
**ENROUTE	The time the unit began its run. This must be later than or equal to Dispatched (unless Dispatched was before midnight and Enroute was after midnight).
*ARRIVED SCENE	The time the unit reached the incident scene. Must be later than or equal to Enroute.
ARRIVED PATIENT	The time emergency personnel made contact with the patient.
*LEFT SCENE	The time when the unit left the scene. Must be later than or equal to Arrived Scene.
*ARRIVED DESTINATION	The time the unit reached the hospital or other destination. Must be later than or equal to Left Scene.
BACK IN SERVICE	The time the unit was ready to respond to another call.
**PARAMEDICS/EMTs	Enter from two to four Paramedic/EMT Numbers. These numbers represent the personnel involved with the run. The first two numbers are required.
BODILY FLUIDS EXPOSURE	Enter Y if emergency personnel were exposed to bodily fluids during the run. If not, you may enter N or leave the field blank.
CPR PRIOR TO EMS ARRIVAL	Enter Y if CPR was initiated before your agencys personnel reached the patient. If not, you may enter N or leave the field blank.
CPR BY CITIZEN	Enter Y if CPR was initiated by a citizen bystander prior to patient contact. If not, you may enter N or leave the field blank.
CPR BY FIRST RESPONDER	Enter Y if CPR was initiated by a First Responder Unit prior to your agencys personnel reaching the patient. If not, you may enter N or leave the field blank.
SAFETY EQUIPMENT USAGE?	Enter Y if the patient was using appropriate safety equipment such as seat belts, helmet, etc. at the time of the incident. If not, you may enter N or leave the field blank.
SUSPICION OF ALCOHOL/DRUG USE	Enter Y if your personnel had reason to suspect that alcohol or drug use was a factor in the incident. If not, you may enter N or leave the field blank.
**ODOMETER BEGIN	Enter the emergency response vehicle odometer reading at the time it began travelling to the incident scene. You need not enter the entire reading. For example, a reading of 15,281 miles could be entered as 5281 or 281.
*ODOMETER SCENE	The vehicle mileage at the time of arrival at the incident scene. If the run was not cancelled, the scene mileage must be greater or equal to the begin mileage.
**ODOMETER END	The vehicle mileage at the time it arrived at its destination.
BILLABLE	The end mileage must be equal to or greater than the begin mileage. This field is calculated and displayed and cannot be modified directly. It is the end mileage less the scene mileage.
HOME ZIP CODE	Patient Home Zip Code.
*RACE	The code indicating patient ethnicity.
*SEX	Patient gender; either M, F or U (Unknown).
DATE OF BIRTH	The patient Date of Birth, in MM/DD/CCYY format. The century (CC) must be either 18 or 19. When Date of Birth is entered, Patient Age is calculated and displayed automatically. The Age is calculated as of the Incident Date. The Date of Birth must be on or before the Incident Date.
*AGE	Patient Age in years on the Incident Date. If you enter the Date of Birth, the Age will display automatically and cannot be modified. If you know or can estimate Patient Age but not Date of Birth, leave the Date of Birth blank and enter the Age. Enter 0 for patients under 1 year of age.

FIELDS ON SCREEN 3

CRAMS CIRCULATION	Valid values are 0, 1 and 2.
*CRAMS CAPILLARY REFILL	Valid values are 0, 1 and 2. The lesser of the Circulation and Capillary values is automatically displayed to the right of Capillary Refill and will become part of the CRAMS score total.
CRAMS RESPIRATION	Valid values are 0, 1 and 2. The lesser of the Respiration and Respiratory Effort values is automatically displayed to the right of Respiratory Effort and will become part of the CRAMS score total. Valid values are 0, 1 and 2.
*CRAMS RESPIRATORY EFFORT	Valid values are 0, 1 and 2.
CRAMS ABDOMEN/THORAX	Valid values are 0, 1 and 2.
CRAMS MOTOR	Valid values are 0, 1 and 2.
CRAMS SPEECH	Valid values are 0, 1 and 2
CRAMS SCORE TOTAL	This field is calculated and displayed automatically and represents the total of the five CRAMS components listed above it on the screen.
*GLASGOW EYE OPEN	Valid values are 1, 2, 3 and 4.
*GLASGOW VERBAL	Valid values are 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5.
*GLASGOW MOTOR	Valid values are 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6.
INJURY/ILLNESS CODES	Up to six codes can be entered. The same code must not appear more than once In the six fields.
TREATMENT CODES	Up to six codes can be entered. The same code must not appear more than once in the six fields.

FIELDS ON SCREEN 4

*INITIAL PULSE	Valid values are 0 to 400
*INITIAL BLOOD PRESSURE	Two values can be entered. The first is the Systolic Blood Pressure (valid values 0 or 20 to 300) and the second is Diastolic Blood Pressure (valid values 0 to 200). In the diastolic Blood Pressure field, "P" can be entered, indicating a pressure taken by palpation. Only the Systolic value is required for non-cancelled runs.
*INITIAL RESPIRATION	Valid values are 0 to 99.
INITIAL TEMPERATURE	The Temperature can be entered In either Fahrenheit or Centigrade scale. When Tab or Enter is pressed, you are asked to indicate the scale used. Press F for Fahrenheit or C for Centigrade. If the Temperature was entered in Centigrade, It is translated to Fahrenheit and redisplayed. The field is always saved as a Fahrenheit value. The valid Fahrenheit values are 0, or 50 to 120.
ECG 1, 2 & 3	If ECG(s) were done, enter the code for the initial result as ECG I and one or two repeat rhythms as ECGs 2 and 3.
MEDICATIONS	From one to six Medication Codes can be entered. If a particular medication is administered more than once, its code can be repeated in the list.
*DESTINATION	Enter the code for the Destination to which the patient was transported.
**DISPOSITION	Enter the patient Disposition Code.

If you type to the end of a field, the cursor will automatically advance to the next field. To move to the next field without filling the current field, press Tab or Enter.

Note that everything you type is in upper case. The computer will not allow any entry In lower case, even if the Caps Lock Is not on.

When you have completed typing In all the fields on the four data entry screens, press the F2 key. F2 is used to save a new record for an Incident not previously saved. When you press F2, the record will be edited. Any problems found will be displayed on the message line, a beep will sound, and the cursor will be positioned on the field, ready to be fixed. Make the correction(s) and press F2 again. When all the edits are passed, the record will be saved and, "New Record Written" will appear on the message line.

OVERRIDING THE EDITS

Occasionally, you may not have all the information on an incident at the time you initially enter it into the computer. Pressing F2 (SAVE) may result in failed edits on the fields you have left blank, In which case the computer will not save the record.

To force the computer to save the record in spite of the missing Information, you can press Shift-F2. When pressing Shift-F2, only the Incident Number, Date and Patient Last Name fields are required to be filled in. WARNING: Although the edits can be bypassed when a record is saved, all the edits must be passed before the record can be exported to the State Bureau of EMS.

ENTERING RECORDS CONTAINING SIMILAR INFORMATION

If an incident involves multiple patients, each patient must be entered as a separate record. The normal procedure for entering records would involve pressing F5 between records and starting all over. However, if enough information is common between two records, as with multi-patient incidents, you can use the following shortcut:

Press F5.

Enter the first record.

Save the record with F2 or Shift-F2. Modify each field which is different for the second patient record. The Incident Number MUST be changed (perhaps by adding an "A" or "B" to the end of the number. Example: Patient one could be 940001 and patient two could be 940001A).

Presss F2 or Shift-F2 to save the second record. Modify the needed fields and save the third records, etc.

LOOKING UP AN EXISTING RECORD

Once several records have been entered, you will likely have a need to look one of them up, either to check information or to make modifications. There are several ways to do this.

To look up records, in order, by Patient Last Name:

• Press F5.
• Press F3 (VIEW). Each time you press F3, the next incident will display on the screen. When you have viewed all records, "No more records" will appear on the message line. Note that the records are displayed in alphabetical order of Patient Name. Flashing "<" sysmbols after the First and Last Names indicate that these are the current fields being used to access records, referred to a "key" fields.

To look up an incident by Patient Name:

• Press F5.
• Press the down arrow key twice to reach Patient Last Name. Type in the patient name. You can enter just a last name, or even just a portion of a last name. If you are unsure of the first name, you can enter as much as you know, followed by an asterisk (called a wildcard character). Here are some examples of name look ups:

PATIENT LAST NAME: SMITH FIRST: (Look up first Smith)

PATIENT LAST NAME: SMITH FIRST: EDGAR (Look up Edgar Smith)

PATIENT LAST NAME: SMITH FIRST: ZA* (First Smith with first name starting with "ZA")

Press F3. The computer will attempt to find an exact match for the name you entered. if an exact match cannot be found, the next name in alphabetical sequence will display. For example if there are no SMITHs on file, the computer may display SNOW, if it is the next name in sequence. Subsequent presses of F3 will access records in Patient Name order.

To look up an incident by Incident Number:

• Press P5.
• Enter the Incident Number.
• Press F3. If an exact match to the number you entered cannot be found, the computer will display "No more records."
• Note that the flashing "<" symbol now appears after incident Number, indicating that It is now the current "key" field.

Incident Numbers can be reused in subsequent years (but cannot be used twice in the same year). Therefore, when you look up a record by Incident Number, the incident from the earliest year with that number will display. To view records from subsequent years with the same number, press F3 repeatedly. When all occurrences of the Incident Number have been viewed, the computer will access the next highest Incident Number.

To look up an Incident by Incident Date:

• Press F5.
• Press Tab or Enter to reach Incident Date. Enter the date you are interested in. You may specify just year, year and month or a full date. The year, however, should be entered for correct access. Be sure to enter the date parts in the correct fields (format MM/DD/YY).
• Press F3. The computer will access the first record matching the date you specified. If no records with that date are found, the next record in date sequence will display.
• Note that the flashing "<" Indicates Incident Date is the current "key" field.
• Subsequent presses of F3 will access incident records in Incident Date order.

No matter which of the three key fields is currently active (Patient Name, Incident Number or Incident Date), pressing F3 will bring up the next record in the current key sequence. To go In reverse order of key values, press Shift-F3.

MODIFYING AN EXISTING RECORD

To make changes to a record previously entered:

• Look up the record as explained previously. Make the changes needed.
• Press F8 (MODIFY).
• The record will be edited, Just as it was when originally saved. If the edits are passed, "Record updated" will appear on the message line.

Just as pressing Shift-F2 overrides the edits when a record is saved, pressing Shift-F8 to modify a record also bypasses the edits.

DELETING AN EXISTING RECORD

To delete a record previously entered:

• Look up the record as explained previously.
• Press F7 (DELETE).
• Answer the "Are you sure?" question by pressing "Y."
• The record Is permanently deleted.

GETTING ON-SCREEN HELP

RETURNING TO THE MAIN MENU

Throughout the program, pressing Esc will return you to the Main Menu.

MAIN MENU ITEM 2 - MAINTAIN RELATED CODE FILES

The first three items on the Code File Menu, EMTs, Districts and Unit Permit Numbers are normally the only files you will need to maintain. Instructions for entering these three files were included previously in the section entitled "Entering Codes for your Organization". The remaining nine code files are shipped to you already loaded with the standard statewide codes. These files should only be modified under Instruction from the Bureau of EMS.

MAIN MENU ITEM 3 -PRINT REPORTS

The Incident Reports Menu allows you to generate 11 different reports. These reports are based on the incident data you entered through Main Menu Item 1. When you select a report, an Incident Reports Parameter Selection Screen is displayed. This screen is the same for every report.

You can move between parameter fields by pressing Enter, Tab and the up and down arrow keys. By filling in values for the parameters, you can select which records in the incident database are to be included In the report.

For example, if you wish to report on the month of March, 1994, you would enter an Incident Start Date of 03/01/94 and an End date of 03/31/94. All reports will Include records matching the starting and ending values as well as all values in between.

You may select any combination of parameters, or none at all (with the exception of the District Run Report and Run Volume Report which require an Incident Date range). For example, to report on patients aged one to five treated by unit 180401, you would enter:

Unit Permit Number Start: 180401 End:

Age Start: 1 End: 5

Note that if the ending value is the same as the starting value, you need enter only the starting value.

If you leave all the parameters blank, every record in the database will be included in the report.

By specifying "Y" for the "Exclude Cancelled Runs?" parameter, you can choose only those runs which were not cancelled (cancelled runs Include runs with a Dispatch Code of 099 or Disposition Code of 05 or 10). If you leave this parameter blank, both cancelled and non-cancelled runs will be included.

The Report Destination parameter allows you to send your report to the screen ("S") or the printer ("P"). If you leave this field blank, the report will go to the screen.

When you have selected all the parameters for the report, press F2. An information screen will display showing the number of records read from the database and the number of records selected, according to your parameters.

If you selected no parameters, the numbers read and selected should be the same. The "Number of records read" count is the total number of records you have entered into the database.

If you have a large number of records in your database, the selection and reporting processes could take a considerable amount of time. You may find that certain reports take longer to generate than others.

If you selected screen output, the first page of the report (a cover page), will display when the report has been generated. You can press PgUp, PgDn and the up and down arrow keys to scan through the report. All reports list your parameter selections and the current date on the cover sheet. When you are finished viewing the report, press Esc and you will return to the Incident Reports Menu.

If you selected printer output, you will be prompted to prepare your printer when the report has been generated. You can begin printing by pressing Enter or cancel by pressing Esc. A counter is displayed showing the number of lines sent to the printer.

Following is a brief description of each report:

CRAMS BY DESTINATION REPORT: This report lists each destination Involved in the records you selected. Under each destination is a breakdown by CRAMS score of patients taken to that destination. Specific incident (run) numbers are listed for CRAMS scores 0 through 6. The destination total shows the total runs taken to each destination.

You may wish to use this report to ensure critical CRAMS patients are being taken to the correct destination(s).

DATA DUMP REPORT: This is a report showing all Information entered for each incident selected. One incident record per page is listed. If you need complete information for a particular Incident on paper, this report should be useful. To select one specific incident on the Reports Parameter screen, simply enter the incident number under Incident Number Start, select "9" for the Report Destination, and press F2.

DISPATCH HOUR REPORT: This report shows the number and percentage of dispatches occurring during each hour of the day. It can be used to determine when high and low activity times are.

DISTRICT RUN REPORT: This report requires you to select an incident date range from the parameter screen. The report covers a minimum of one month and maximum of one year. Up to 12 months that you select are displayed along the top of the report. Districts having activity during the period are listed down the left. For each district, you will see the number of Incidents responded to for each month. Percentages appear below the incident counts. The percentages indicate what percentage of calls each district had for each month. The bottom TOTAL line Indicates the total incidents responded to for each month.

This report can be used to track activity levels by district and/or by month.

EMT TREATMENT REPORT: This report lists each EMT who participated in one or more incidents meeting the parameters you selected. EMTs are listed alphabetically. For each EMT is a list of treatments given on runs in which the EMT participated. Note that this does not necessarily mean that any particular EMT actually administered the treatment, as it could have been performed by one of the other EMTs Involved in the same run. For example, if treatment 140 (CPR), was given during a run in which EMTs A, B and C were involved, each of those three EMTs would get one count of exposure to CPR treatment.

For each EMT, the Treatments with No Exposure section lists those treatments which the EMT was not involved with. This may be a useful training aid for Increasing personnel exposure to certain treatments.

MEDICATION REPORT: This report lists, by Unit Permit Number, the number of times medications were given. To be counted, a medication must have been given on at least one run meeting the parameters you specified. This report may be useful in tracking medications used in each emergency vehicle.

MULTIPLE USERS REPORT: This report allows you to track patients who may be abusing the EMS system by placing an excess of emergency calls. The report lists patients with the same name and date of birth who had two or more incidents meeting your specified parameters. The computer assumes that two incidents with the same name and date of birth are actually the same person. Persons with missing dates of birth are also matched to those having the same name.

PRIMARY INJURY/ILLNESS BY AGE/GENDER REPORT: This report lists all Injury/Illness Codes found on incident records meeting the report parameters. Each injury/illness is broken down by counts for male, female, unknown gender and total. This report could be useful in tracking the type of calls related to a particular age group that your agency is responding to most frequently.

RESPONSE TIMES REPORT: This report allows you to track how long your agency is taking when responding to calls. Response times are broken down into segments:

• Dispatch to Enroute
• Dispatch to Arrival
• Arrival to Departure
• Dispatch to Destination

For each segment, the VALUES column lists how many incidents had both times of that particular segment entered. For example, to be counted under VALUES, the dispatch to enroute segment must have both the Dispatch Time and Enroute Time entered. If an incident record is missing one or both times for a segment, the run will be counted under the MISSING column.

The AVERAGE column lists the average number of minutes for each response time segment. MINIMUM lists the shortest response time and MAXIMUM the longest response time. In addition, the report lists the run numbers having the maximum time for each segment.

RUN VOLUME REPORT:  This report requires you to specify an incident date range on the Reports Parameter Selections screen. A minimum of one month and maximum of 12 months is covered. The report lists counts, by month, of Dispatch Codes. The TOTAL column lists the total number of each Dispatch Code during the reports time period, along with a percentage of total dispatches.

The TOTAL RUNS BY MONTH section lists the total number of runs made each month. Finally, total runs are broken down with counts for transport and non-transport runs. The report may be useful for tracking dispatch and month statistics.

TREATMENT REPORT:   This report lists, by Unit Permit Number, the number of times treatments were given. To be counted, a treatment must have been given on at least one run meeting the parameters you specified. This report may be useful in tracking treatment supplies used in each emergency vehicle.

MAIN MENU ITEM 4 - UTILITIES

The Incident Utilities Menu contains nine miscellaneous functions. Some of the utilities include parameter screens on which you may specify date ranges, etc. You can Tab and Back-tab between fields on the parameter screens. When you pass the last field, you will be given a choice to continue (press Enter) or to modify your choices (press Esc).

Following are descriptions of each of the nine utilities:

UTILITIES MENU ITEM I - VERIFY AND OUTPUT INCIDENT RECORDS FOR THE STATE

EMS agencies in Utah are required to submit incident data to the State Bureau of EMS on a monthly basis. This utility will allow you to prepare a floppy disk containing incident records for one month. This disk should then be sent to the Bureau of EMS.

You should run this utility as soon as possible after the end of each month and after all incident records for the month have been entered. It is important to understand that this utility DOES NOT remove incident records from your database. It simply makes a copy of them on a floppy disk, then marks them in your database as having been sent to the State.

You are first asked to specify the month and year for which you wish to export data. Make these entries and press Enter to continue. You are then asked to select:

You should select option 1 the first time you export records at the end of a month.

Option 2 can be used if, for some reason, you need to recreate a batch of records from an earlier month. For example, if your original disk was lost In the mail or damaged, you could run option 2 to replace it.

You will then be asked to prepare your printer. Each record with an Incident Date in the month you specified will be edited before being exported. If any records are found which do not pass the edits, a report is printed detailing the problems found. In order for the export to continue, all records from the export month must pass the edits.

During the export process you will see a display of the number of records read, the number selected and the numbers passing and failing the edits. Only records in the month being exported are read. If you selected export option I (records not previously exported), only records which haven92t been exported will be selected. Option 2 should select all records, regardless of export status, for the month.

If all records passed the edits, you will be asked to press Enter to proceed with the export. You will need to specify which floppy drive to write the export records to (probably A or B). You also are asked for the name of the floppy disk file. A suggested name is filled in automatically. The suggested name contains the month being exported, your service license number and the year being exported (EXAMPLE: FEB0901L.Y93).

When you press Enter to continue, the computer will display the number of records exported to the floppy disk file. Press Esc to return to the Utilities Menu. The floppy disk may now be removed, labelled and mailed to the Bureau of EMS.

If, during the pre-export edits, one or more records failed the edits, a report detaIling the needed fixes Is printed.

The report lists Incident Number, Date and Patient Name for each record. You can return to Main Menu Item 1, look up each record by Incident Number, and make the correction(s) indicated on the report. Once the corrections are made, you can return to the export utility and rerun it using the same procedure as the first time. If your corrections were effective, all records should now pass the edits and be exported to the floppy disk.
 
 UTILITIES MENU ITEM 2 - EXPORT INCIDENT RECORDS (ASCII FORMAT)

This utility is provided for those users who may wish to load records from the Incident System into another database or program. It makes a copy of records you select. The records in the Incident System database are not deleted or changed in any way.

Begin by defining which records to export by entering beginning and ending incident dates. All records with incident dates on or between these dates will be written to the disk. If you wish to output all records in the database, specify the date range 01/01/90 through 12/31/99.

Select the disk drive and file name for output. Your hard drive can be selected, or a floppy drive. The default file name INCIDENT.ASC is provided. If a file already exists with this name, It will be replaced with the new output.

Counts for records read and exported are displayed. The output file is in standard ASCII format. Following is the record description which you may need when loading the records into another software system:
 

UTILITIES MENU ITEM 3- BACKUP INCIDENT INFORMATION

The backup will make floppy disk copies of the main data files used in the Incident System. Since there is always a potential for flies to be lost or damaged, YOU SHOULD RUN THE BACKUP ON A REGULAR SCHEDULE. Before running the backup, you should have formatted disk(s) ready. It Is possible that the backup may require more than one disk. Begin the backup by specifying which floppy drive your backup disk Is located in. Insert the disk and press Enter to begin the process.

 Should your initial disk fill up during the backup, you will be asked to remove it and insert a second, formatted disk. Press Esc when the second disk is ready.

 
UTILITIES MENU ITEM 4-RESTORE INCIDENT INFORMATION FROM BACKUP

This utility should be run ONLY if incident files are lost or seriously damaged. ANY INFORMATION WHICH HAS BEEN ENTERED SINCE THE LAST BACKUP WILL BE LOST.
 
 You will be asked to confirm your Intention of running the restore by typing RESTORE.

 You are asked to identify the floppy drive to restore from. As the process runs, an on-screen record counter is displayed. When all records from the first disk have been restored, you are given the opportunity to continue with subsequent disks if necessary.
 
UTILITIES MENU ITEM 5- ARCHIVE AND DELETE INCIDENT INFORMATION

As a safety precaution, it is advisable to run utility 3, "Backup Incident Information" prior to running the archive and delete. This will ensure your ability to recover data in case of accidental erasure.

This utility can be used to remove older records from the Incident System. The advantages of removing old records include freeing up disk space and increased speed of program execution.

Please use caution In running this utility, so as not to remove records which may still be of importance (although they can be restored if need be).

Two processes are carried out. The first archives the selected records to a floppy disk. The second deletes the records from the system on your hard drive. Thus, although the records are gone from your computer, you will still have them available on the floppy disk.

A warning screen requires you to verify your intent to archive records.

You will then be asked to supply a range of incident dates. Make sure the dates you enter cover a period long enough ago that you wont likely need the data again. You are then asked which floppy disk drive to archive to and which file name to use. A default file name of INCIDENT.ARC is supplied. BE SURE THAT YOU ARE NOT OVERWRITING A PREVIOUS ARCHIVE WHICH MAY HAVE USED THE SAME NAME. It would be best to archive to a newly-formatted floppy disk.

Before proceeding, make sure you have loaded a floppy disk in the correct drive. You will be informed of the number of records archived and deleted.

Label the disk with the name of the file and date and store it in a safe place.
 
UTILITIES MENU ITEM 6 - RESTORE INCIDENT INFORMATION FROM ARCHIVE

This utility should be used only to retrieve information which was archived and deleted under Utilities Menu Item 5. Incident date range, drive letter and file name entries are required. The utility will restore any archived records having incident dates within the date range you specified.

A summary screen will display the number of archived records read from the floppy disk and

UTILITIES MENU ITEM 7- SET DEFAULT SERVICE NUMBER

Please see the section, "Establishing a Default Service Number" located in the initial software installation section of the manual.
 

UTILITIES MENU ITEM 8 - SELECT SCREEN COLORS

Using this utility will allow you to change the colors of the Incident System screens. You may change colors as often as you wish. The settings you specify will effect all screens and will remain active until changed again. The setting will also be in effect in the CME software if you are running it in the same subdirectory.

You will be asked for four different color selections:

The screen background
Label text (headings, field labels, messages, etc.)
Field background
Field text

UTILITIES MENU ITEM 9- CHANGE SECURITY PASSWORD

This utility should be run when the Incident System is initially installed (see "Establishing a Security Password") or at any time when you feel unauthorized personnel may be aware of the current Incident password. You may also wish to change the password on a regular basis.

The Incident and CME passwords may be different if you wish.
 

 DATA ENTRY FUNCTION KEYS - QUICK REFERENCE