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LifePACT 1 Team: LifePACT critical care paramedics and physicians transport patients throughout Southern New EnglandLifePACT 1 Team: LifePACT critical care paramedics and physicians transport patients throughout Southern New England

The mission of the Division of Emergency Medical Services is to provide exceptional EMS care, education, research, and service to the people of Rhode Island and beyond.

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We seek to promote the health and integrity of the EMS system throughout Rhode Island and in surrounding communities.

 

 

 

Kenneth Williams, MD, FACEP, FAEMS, Director, Division of Emergency Medical Services, Fellowship Core Faculty.

Other faculty include:

Nick Asselin, DO, MS, FACEP, FAEMS, Director, EMS Fellowship Program

Dr. Nick Asselin completed his Emergency Medicine Residency at Rhode Island Hospital in 2015 and his EMS fellowship at UMass in 2016.  Dr. Asselin's research focus area is asynchronous education and out-of-hospital cardiac arrest.

Heather Rybasack-Smith, MD, MPH, BCEMS, EMS Physician.

Joseph Lauro, MD, FACEP, EMS Physician

Dr. Lauro completed his residency at SUNY Syracuse where he was actively involved in prehospital training and education.  He currently works clinically at the The Miriam Hospital and Newport Hospital and serves as the American College of Emergency Physicians representative to the Ambulance Service Advisory Board for the  RI Department of Health.  Dr. Lauro serves as the EMS Medical Director for Newport Hospital and the surrounding regions as well as Cumberland Rescue.  His main interest is prehospital eduation where he serves as Medical Director for the Roger Williams University Paramedic Program as well as the New England Emergency Medical Training.
Kristi McAteer

Francis Sullivan, MD, BCEMS, Fellowship Core Faculty

Dr. Sullivan graduated from training at the University of South Carolina and has been an attending physician at Rhode Island Hospital since 1983.  Dr. Sullivan is the Director of Junior Resident EMS  education.  His EMS focus areas include medical direction, critical care transport, and education.

Selim Suner, MD

Dr. Suner graduated from the Emergency Medicine Residency at Brown, where he also earned a Masters Degree in Bio-Medical Engineering.  His focus area is disaster medicine and has extensive experience in Emergency Medical Services.

Elizabeth Sutton, MD

Dr. Sutton graduated from EM residency at Baystate Medical Center.  Her EMS focus area is wilderness medicine.

Affliliate Staff

 

Education

Conferences

The Division organizes and sponsors the annual New England EMS Leadership Conference in late November, in cooperation with the New England Council for EMS, bringing together administrative and clinical leadership attendees from EMS programs throughout the area.  EMS Fellows from area programs are strongly encouraged to attend and enjoy the networking opportunities.

Fellowships-- We offer several fellowship options:

ACGME-approved 1 year EMS Fellowship  EMS Brochure

2-year combined ACGME EMS Fellowship and Disaster Fellowship (with an MPH through Brown optional)

1 year EMS Fellowship through the Brown Academies in EMS (typically for international applicants)

Resident Education

Brown EM residents enjoy two EMS rotation experiences and a number of other EMS options.  

PGY1 residents orient to Rhode Island EMS during their first month of residency with a one-week introductory schedule that includes tours of Rhode Island's 911 Center, the Providence Emergency Management Agency, and USCG Station Castle Hill in Newport, RI.  Didactic and practical sessions provide training in medical control of EMS providers.  Ambulance ride-along experiences with a number of 911 EMS agencies and the LifePACT critical care transport service provide field and EMS communications experience.  ICS and HAZMAT awareness training, including hospital-level decon experience, round out the week.

PGY3 residents rotate in EMS for four weeks, with LifePACT transport physician coverage, tours of the RI Department of Health, 911 EMS agency ride-along, a focused EMS research and teaching project, and discussion sessions scheduled during the rotation.

Starting with the PGY2 year, Brown EM residents are able to provide LifePACT critical care transport physician coverage as a paid-on-call (moonlighting) experience.  During these shifts they are supervised indirectly by EMS faculty and directly care for critically ill or injured patients during transport. 

EMS Electives are popular during residency, and have included extensive 911 ride-along experience, helicopter EMS ride-along, EMS training, research, wilderness EMS, and international EMS projects.

Students

Students from the Alpert Medical School, PA programs, Paramedic programs, pre-med programs and others participate in EMS activities offered by the Division, including: 

  • Mentoring
  • Research and Independent Study Project supervision
  • Training
  • Rotation experiences
  • Electives

Research

Division Research and Academic Activity includes the following:

  • Rhode Island Disaster Initiative (RIDI, 1999-2005, completed)
  • TATRC pre-deployment military teamwork training (completed)
  • Can adult emergency department patients self-triage?
  • The impact of volunteer companions on adult patient experience in the emergency department.
  • A proposed definition for saving a life in EMS and Emergency Care.
  • History of EMS.
  • History of Helicoper EMS in the USA.
  • EMS Education / Training.
  • Community Paramedicine.
  • Trans-nasal Narcan for opiate overdose: Study on the possible benefits of using a novel Narcan preparation in the prehospital setting for opiate overdose.
  • Simulation in Disaster Response Training.
  • Impact of Mental Health and Substance Use Disorders on Emergency Department Visit Outcomes among Persons Living with HIV
  • Standardized Treatment and Optimal Resuscitation through Mechanical Adjuncts (STORM) Program