County, EMS leaders launch app integrating public help with emergency responses
PENN TWP — EMS providers in Butler County are quick, but they’re usually not right around the corner. With the help of the community, they don’t have to be.
Leaders in emergency services and Butler County gathered Thursday, May 21, at the Pittsburgh-Butler Regional Airport for the launch of PulsePoint Respond, a 911-integrated mobile app that alerts CPR-trained individuals to medical emergencies in nearby public areas so they may assist until first responders arrive.
“What makes this program especially meaningful is that it expands the chain of survival beyond public safety agencies and into the community itself,” said Cranberry Township EMS Chief Matt Nickl.
A companion app, PulsePoint AED, is also available for download and alerts users to nearby automated external defibrillators in the event of cardiac emergency.
Survival can depend on how quickly CPR is initiated and an AED is applied, and PulsePoint helps close that gap by (connecting) those in need with people nearby who are willing and able to help before first responders arrive,“ Nickl said.
The announcement of the apps becoming available in Butler County is the result of a partnership between AHN Prehospital Care Services, Butler County Emergency Services, Cranberry Township EMS and LEFCON, an IT support company based in Harmony.
The app’s launch in Butler County had been developing for two to three years and came during National EMS Week, which highlights the lifesaving care provided by paramedics and EMTs.
When a call comes in to the 911 center, the information is sent to the app to show the approximate location of emergencies. If it’s a cardiac emergency, the user will receive the exact location, explained county emergency services director Steve Bicehouse.
“It’s very technical to get all that information appropriately vetted and transferred from one disparate system to another,” Bicehouse said.
He added emergency services are not bound by the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPPA), but the app will protect people’s privacy by not reporting certain incidents, such as psychiatric emergencies.
The app also includes a way to verify users are CPR-certified.
Bicehouse said the county commissioners paid for the app to be integrated with the county 911 system, and LEFCON funded the first year of the app’s licensing.
“We could think of nothing better to invest in than EMS services,” said Commissioner Leslie Osche.
Osche added there was talk of the county and EMS leaders applying for grants to fund the app’s licensing in the future, but those plans are still developing.
“There was collective discussion about some grant submissions for future funding, then we’ll have to explore what the proposed costs look like,” she said.
The app can be downloaded from the Apple App Store or Google Play Store.
