Prince George’s County Fire/EMS – Inter-Facility Transport Policy

Vocabulary flashcards summarizing key terms and definitions from the Prince George’s County Fire/EMS General Order on Inter-Facility Transports.

Emergency Inter-Facility Transport

Transfer of a patient with an emergency or life-threatening condition to obtain specialized care unavailable at the transferring facility.

Inter-Facility Transport

Movement of a patient from one local hospital-based emergency department to another for a higher level of care.

Non-Emergency Inter-Facility Transport

Patient transfer conducted for convenience or preference rather than an emergent medical need.

EMS Unit

A transport-capable ambulance designated as either Basic Life Support (BLS) or Advanced Life Support (ALS).

Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act (EMTALA)

1986 federal law requiring hospitals to assess and treat emergency conditions regardless of ability to pay; impacts EMS operations.

Licensed Commercial Ambulance Service

Private, for-profit company licensed by MIEMSS under COMAR Title 30 to provide BLS and/or ALS inter-facility transports.

Local Hospital-Based Emergency Department

Emergency department physically located in one of the hospitals or freestanding medical centers within Prince George’s County.

Transferring Facility

Hospital whose physician initiates a patient’s transfer to another facility.

Transferring Facility Physician

Attending physician who requests and assumes responsibility for an inter-facility transport.

Receiving Facility

Hospital whose physician agrees to accept the transferred patient and provide continued care.

Receiving Facility Physician

Physician at the receiving hospital who accepts the patient and assumes medical responsibility.

Public Safety Communications (PSC)

County dispatch center responsible for contacting the EMS Duty Officer and coordinating EMS unit deployment.

EMS Duty Officer

Chief officer who approves or denies inter-facility transport requests using the Inter-Facility Transport Approval Checklist.

Inter-Facility Transport Approval Checklist

Document used by the EMS Duty Officer to ensure all criteria are met before dispatching an EMS unit for a transfer.

Inter-Facility Transport Authorization Form

Written verification completed and signed by the transferring physician authorizing the emergency patient transfer.

Emergency Transport Tracking Tool

Form completed by the EMS Duty Officer for quality-assurance tracking of emergency inter-facility transports.

Scope of Practice

Clinical procedures and treatments an EMS provider is legally permitted to perform under Maryland Medical Protocols.

MIEMSS

Maryland Institute for Emergency Medical Services Systems; issues Inter-hospital Transfer Guidelines and licenses EMS services.

COMAR Title 30

Section of the Code of Maryland Regulations governing EMS system operations, including commercial ambulance licensing.

AEMS Office

Office responsible for quality assurance and performance evaluation of inter-facility transports within the Fire/EMS Department.

EMS Quality Assurance Coordinator

Individual charged with developing and maintaining QA processes for inter-facility transport services.

Minimum Staffing

Required number of on-duty personnel for each front-line apparatus within Emergency Operations Command.

On-Line Medical Control

Real-time medical direction provided by the transferring physician during patient transport.

Front-Line Apparatus

In-service Fire/EMS vehicles counted toward minimum staffing; not to be used for non-emergency inter-facility transports.