New Performance Measures for Pediatric Readiness

The Health Resources and Services Administration Emergency Medical Services for Children (EMSC) Program has released its Performance Measures 2023 Implementation Manual for State Partnership Grantees. The manual outlines 9 new performance measures and 2 program evaluative measures for 2023-2027, addressing hospital emergency department and prehospital pediatric readiness.

The prehospital-based performance measures focus on:

• Improving pediatric readiness in prehospital systems by establishing a standardized pediatric readiness recognition program for prehospital agencies.
• Increasing the number of prehospital agencies with a pediatric emergency care coordinator.
• Increasing the number of prehospital agencies that have a process for pediatric skills-checking on the use of pediatric equipment.
• Increasing pediatric disaster readiness in prehospital agencies by ensuring that disaster plans address the needs of children.

Through its State Partnership Program, the EMSC Program makes grant funds available to states, territories and accredited schools of medicine to support projects for the expansion and improvement of emergency medical services (EMS) for children who need treatment for trauma or critical care.

In addition to the State Partnership Program, EMS providers may want to explore other programs at the EMSC Innovation and Improvement Center supporting prehospital systems such as the National Prehospital Pediatric Readiness Project (PPRP). The goal of the PPRP is to equip EMS systems to be pediatric ready (prepared to provide high-quality care for children in accordance with national recommendations).