TY  - JOUR
PY  - 2000//
TI  - Do warning lights and sirens reduce ambulance response times?
JO  - Prehospital emergency care
A1  - Brown, L. H.
A1  - Whitney, C. L.
A1  - Hunt, Richard C.
A1  - Addario, M.
A1  - Hogue, Todd
SP  - 70
EP  - 74
VL  - 4
IS  - 1
N2  - OBJECTIVE: To determine the time saving associated with lights and siren (L&S) use during emergency response in an urban EMS system. METHODS: This prospective study evaluated ambulance response times from the location at time of dispatch to the scene of an emergency in an urban area. A control group of responses using L&S was compared with an experimental group that did not use L&S. An observer was assigned to ride along with ambulance crews and record actual times for all L&S responses. At a later date, an observer and an off-duty paramedic in an identical ambulance retraced the route--at the same time of day on the same day of the week--without using L&S and recorded the travel time. Response times for the two groups were compared using paired t-test. RESULTS: The 32 responses with L&S averaged 105.8 seconds (1 minute, 46 seconds) faster than those without (95% confidence interval: 60.2 to 151.5 seconds, p = 0.0001). The time difference ranged from 425 seconds (7 minutes, 5 seconds) faster with L&S to 210 seconds (3 minutes, 30 seconds) slower with L&S. CONCLUSION: In this urban EMS system, L&S reduce ambulance response times by an average of 1 minute, 46 seconds. Although statistically significant, this time saving is likely to be clinically relevant in only a very few cases. A large-scale multicenter L&S trial may help address this issue on a national level.
LA  - 
SN  - 1090-3127
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/
ID  - ref1
ER  -