July 2008
On July 2, EMSTARS went live with the startup of the Charter Agencies. The Florida Bureau of EMS is proud of the work that the EMS Advisory Council Data Committee, Pilot Program Agencies and the EMSTARS Project Team, as well as other EMS consituents, have accomplished to keep EMSTARS on schedule with going live on July 3.

With the official startup of EMSTARS, the Pilot testing will come to a close.  The pilot testing has been a great success.  The Bureau of EMS and the EMSTARS Project Team appreciate the leadership and dedication that the Pilot Agencies have demonstrated.

The EMSTARS Project Team will continue to work in phases to transition the remaining EMS Provider Agencies from aggregate data reporting to EMSTARS data reporting.  The future startup dates are October 2008, April 2009 and July 2009.  Agencies have already started signing up for these future starup dates.

July 11 - Golden Hour is Compliant
With the addition of Golden Hour a total of 11 software vendors have now achieved EMSTARS compliance.  For complete details on all the ePCR solutions, their vendors, and the status of compliance testing, please visit the Software Vendors page.

June 2008
In June 2008, the Department of Health, Bureau of EMS received a plaque and an award from NEMSIS in recognition for being among the first 10 states to submit data to the National EMS Information System.  On May 29, there was a Press Release from the National EMS Registry in an effort to ensure better prehospital care for patients in this country seeking emergency medical care.

May 21 - June 26 - EMSTARS Key User Workshops
Members of the EMSTARS Project Team in partnership with some of the Data Committee members facilitated EMSTARS Key User Workshops in 14 different cities throughout Florida.  The audience at the workshops varied from Key Users to participants that had limited knowledge of EMSTARS.

The workshops were very successful and the Project Team received great feedback.  Overall, there were approximately 180 participants and representation from approximately 110 agencies.  The Bureau of EMS and the EMSTARS Project Team thanks all of the providers who participated and appreciates the time and effort they have dedicated to this project.

The Bureau of EMS commends the committee members for taking the time out of their busy schedules to partner with the EMSTARS Project Team for the workshops.  The partnership and collaboration between the EMSTARS Project team, Data Committee representatives, and Pilot Program agencies was very beneficial at the workshops.  The representation and the interaction that the Data Committee members and the Pilot Program agencies provided during the workshops had a great impact on the success of the workshops.

The EMSTARS Project Team recognizes the following Data Committee members for thier leadership and commitment to the EMSTARS Key User Training Workshops and for taking part in the presentation of the information:

• Charles Moreland, Jacksonville Fire and Rescue
• Ken Devin, Jacksonville Fire and Rescue
• Steven LaRue, Hialeah Fire Rescue
• Art Garcia, Lee County EMS
• Mac Kemp, Leon County EMS
• Kathy Koch, Tampa General Aeromed
• Les Williams, Collier County EMS
• Joe Kanzler, Manatee County EMS
• Keith Cartwright, Reedy Creek Emergency Services

The Bureau of EMS thanks the following Data Committee members who participated in some of the workshops:

• Tom Burger, Putnam County EMS
• Tom Benton, University of Florida - Shands
• Dr. Nelson, Florida EMS Medical Director
• Raul Fernandez, City of Miami Fire Rescue
• Dave Holler, City of Pinellas Park Fire Department
• Tom Sheridan, Tamarac Fire Rescue
• Brian Beasley, Gadsden County EMS
• Jeff Barnard, Pinellas County Office of the Medical Director

May 1 - New Data Dictionary Release
The Data Committee has released changes and upgrades to the Florida EMS Data Dictionary.  This release will be version 1.4 and will be implemented later this year.  All changes in this release were driven by issues encountered in pilot program testing.  Specific questions regarding a change or implementation timeframe may be directed to Juan Esparza.

Data Committee Meeting
Tuesday, September 30   8:00 to 4:00
Naples Beach Hotel & Golf Club

EMS Advisory Council
October 1-3 in Naples
EMSTARS Meeting will be on October 1
Naples Beach Hotel & Golf Club

Data Committee Workshop 1108
November 4 - 6
Courtyard Lake Buena Vista