A new heart monitor—the Zoll X-Series heart monitor—is now riding shotgun on the San Marino Fire Department’s frontline ambulance.
“We use this every day,” said Firefighter/Paramedic Jeff Tsay of the San Marino Fire Department. “Anytime we encounter a patient, we’re using it.”
The monitor is an approximately two-foot by half-foot device, equipped with two side compartments. It is a uniquely important piece of technology for San Marino’s exceptional fire department.
SMFD is a Standing Field Treatment Protocol provider, which, according to Tsay, means “our department went through a very rigorous selection process in which we could actually start treating our patients prior to calling our base hospital position for orders.”
That unique designation makes this new monitor and its capabilities all the more pivotal in the field.
“It’s an all-in-one type of machine,” Tsay said. “Once we see that the guy is having a heart attack, we’re actually able to transmit that EKG straight to the hospital,” said Tsay, explaining a modem within the monitor.
“Door to cath lab time is drastically decreased because now the doctor can actually see what we’re seeing in the field and get his tools and his team ready, so that when we get there, there’s no delay.”
The monitor also has a smart blood pressure reader, which reads blood pressure as it’s inflating and deflates immediately thereafter.
“It’s more comfortable for our patient and its faster,” Tsay stated. “That’s probably the coolest thing,” he added.
He explained, “A lot of the drugs we give are based on the blood pressure. Because this machine is so quick, we can get that status of whether or not we can give certain drugs.”
The new monitor can also read carbon monoxide levels in a patient’s blood stream, in addition to carbon dioxide readings.
“Carbon monoxide reading is important for us, especially firefighters, because when we’re going into burning buildings all the products of combustion are carbon monoxide,” explained Tsay.
This reading, along with readings of a patient’s heart rate and oxygen levels, are measured by an infrared light, which is placed on the patient’s index finger.
The monitor comes equipped with four lead electrodes as well, which send electrical signals through the patient’s heart.
“So if there’s any type of blockage, that electrical signal will slow down a little bit in that part of the heart,” Tsay said.
In another compartment, firefighters have electrodes that provide electrical therapy through the patient’s body.
“We don’t use the paddle anymore, we actually put these large stickers on and it does the same thing,” said Tsay, noting that the stickers are more effective.
The new monitor’s final feature is a piece of equipment that, Tsay explained, “tells us how many times we’re pushing in a minute [and] how deep we’re pushing.”
“You used to have to count and guess how far we’re pushing,” Tsay said, noting the American Heart Association requirement of two inches of depth and 100 beats per minute.
“All you need to do is look at a monitor and keep pushing,” Tsay continued. “With six people on scene, it’s great, because one person, after he does two minutes of CPR, we’re able to rotate so another fresh person, who is not tired, can get on the chest and continue the CPR.”
The department purchased the monitor for $45,000. Tsay said the department hopes to have one of these monitors in each of its four apparatuses, including its frontline paramedic trucks and paramedic ambulances.
“In the course of three more years, all apparatuses will have a new monitor,” he said.
