US-based healthcare provider CommonSpirit Health has introduced Utah's inaugural emergency medical services-hospital data exchange, in collaboration with specialist software provider ESO.

This initiative connects nearly 4,000 first responders with real-time patient outcome information. The partnership encompasses three Wasatch Front counties and five hospitals across Utah.

The collaboration enables emergency medical services (EMS) and fire agencies to access longitudinal patient health records via ESO's health data exchange (HDE) platform. All agencies involved in transporting patients to CommonSpirit facilities are eligible to participate, irrespective of their current technology partnerships.

CommonSpirit Health’s mountain region chief medical officer Dr Tim Bode said: "Information is invaluable in medical care, and the more we can share between the field and the hospital, the better care we can provide.

"This partnership benefits patients, EMS crews and our hospital providers alike. It was crucial for us to make this tool available to all agencies that bring patients to our facilities, regardless of their existing technology partnerships, because we understand how vital this data sharing is for improving patient outcomes.”

ESO's HDE is the inaugural interoperability platform that connects EMS agencies with hospitals. This system facilitates the direct transfer of electronic patient care records (ePCR) to hospital electronic health record systems, while enabling EMS personnel to have real-time access to clinical outcome information.

The platform seamlessly integrates with electronic medical record systems, providing EMS teams with discrete clinical data such as procedure notes, comprehensive vital signs, laboratory results, and imaging directly.

Facilitated through direct integration and an outcomes portal, ESO's secure access is claimed to ensure patient privacy while removing traditional barriers between hospital systems and EMS.

ESO chief operating officer Sam Brown said: " We're honoured to work alongside CommonSpirit Health in providing their first responders with access to this critical patient outcome data.

"Their commitment to supporting all EMS agencies reflects our shared belief that access to data leads to stronger, healthier communities.”