Patients with chest pain represent a major burden on emergency medical services usage. Only a small percentage of chest pain patients present to EMS with acute myocardial infarction (AMI) and abnormal ECG findings; the remainder may be AMI without abnormal ECG traces still requiring urgent cardiac intervention, or stable disease or non-cardiac chest pain. Associate Professor Dion Stub's study aims to perform a cluster randomised trial with Ambulance Victoria to assess the feasibility of pre-hospital risk assessment by paramedics in patients presenting with chest pain, using a risk stratification tool combined with a point-of-care troponin measurement. Enabling paramedics to transport appropriate patients directly to specialist cardiac hospitals facilitating early initiation of appropriate cardiac treatment and improving patient outcomes. This would also reduce the resource and financial burden on emergency departments. This study is a vital first step to improve models of care for chest pain patients.
Last updated04 April 2022