Background: The objective of this paper is to evaluate the response times and outcome of patients in two groups\nof patients attended by permanently (PS) and temporarily stationed ambulances (TS) (fluid deployment).\nMethods: Patients transported and treated by EMS between March 21, 2012 and March 20, 2013 in a city with\n1.7 million inhabitants (Shiraz, Iran) were studied. Using the same number of ambulances, patients were divided\ninto two groups: transported by ambulances dispatched from permanent ambulance stations (PS) vs. dispatched\nfrom temporary locations (TS). Furthermore, due to a high discrepancy in the number of missions between PS and\nTS in this group, a pilot study was also conducted to confirm the first result. The results were statistically analyzed\nusing various methods and compared with regard to mortality and response time.\nResults: In this study (both periods), ambulances dispatched from TS had a reduction of their mean response times\nby 2 min compare to ambulances dispatched from PS. The difference was statistically significant (p < 0.001ââ?¬â??[95 % CI,\n1.975, 2.025]). The pre-hospital mortality rate was also significantly lower for this group (p = 0.04ââ?¬â??[95 % CI, 0.006, 0.012]).\nConclusions: The results of this study suggest that temporary deployment of ambulances reduce response times and\nmay improve early survival rates in patients managed by EMS.
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