Provider Health & Safety Resources

• Vaccination Recommendations: Check out the Virginia Department of Health's vaccination recommendations and requirements for healthcare workers.
• EMS Infectious Disease Playbook: This document unifies multiple sources of information in a single planning document addressing the full spectrum of infectious agents to create a concise reference resource for EMS agencies developing their service policies.
• Guide to Infection Prevention in EMS: This guide is intended to assist and guide EMS agencies in providing a safe workplace through effective infection prevention programs adapted to the needs of EMS system responders.
• Covid-19 Resources: Check out the Office of EMS's COVID-19 page to find the latest health and safety information for EMS providers.
• EMS Pandemic Influenza Guidelines for Statewide Adoption: This document provides broad-based Pandemic Influenza Guidelines for consideration by State and local emergency medical services agencies.
• EMS Considerations for Monkeypox: Identify, Isolate, and Inform | NETEC: The CDC is conducting contact tracing of the monkeypox case and local public health departments have been notified, and it is unlikely that EMS clinicians will be exposed to the monkeypox virus is low. However, reviewing information about the disease may still be helpful.
• CDC Information about Monkeypox: General information about Monkeypox.
• NFORS Exposure Tracking App: With the new National Fire Operations Reporting System (NFORS) exposure tracking any fire fighter, paramedic or officer can access and use the exposure tracker which serves as a personal database providing a detailed history of work exposures and critical/traumatic incidents in a private, encrypted and secure online environment.

Ebola Resources

• VDH Ebola – Information for Healthcare Professionals
• VDH Ebola (Ebola virus disease) Fact Sheet
• VDH Ebola Info Website
• NIOSH Info about Ebola for Healthcare Workers
• CDC General Info about Ebola: Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) is a rare and deadly disease in people and nonhuman primates. The viruses that cause EVD are located mainly in sub-Saharan Africa. People can get EVD through direct contact with an infected animal (bat or nonhuman primate) or a sick or dead person infected with Ebola virus. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the Ebola vaccine rVSV-ZEBOV (tradename “Ervebo”) for the prevention of EVD. The rVSV-ZEBOV vaccine has been found to be safe and protective against only the Zaire ebolavirus species of ebolavirus.
• CDC Interim Guidance for Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Systems and 9-1-1 Emergency Communications Centers/Public Safety Answering Points (ECC/PSAPs) for Management of Patients Under Investigation (PUIs) for Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) in the United States: Employers and supervisors should use this information to understand and explain to staff how to respond and stay safe. Supervisors can use this information to prepare, educate, and train EMS personnel. Individuals can use this information to stay safe when responding to PUIs.
• Transporting Suspected / Confirmed Ebola Patients: of Suspected or Confirmed Patients with Ebola Virus Disease in the United States: State EMS officials and regional and state EMS planners can use this information to develop regional transport networks, local transport plans, and standard operating procedures. Managers and medical directors can use this guidance to develop procedures and protocols for their services to conduct interfacility transport (including intrastate or interstate) of PUIs and patients with confirmed Ebola. They may also use the information to prepare, educate, and train EMS personnel. Individual providers may use this information to stay safe when responding to and transporting PUIs or patients confirmed to have Ebola.
• Guidance on Air Medical Transport for Patients with Ebola Virus Disease (EVD): Use this guidance to ensure the safety of healthcare personnel and patients during AMT of patients with EVD. Explain to pilots, other aircraft personnel, and cleaning crews what special actions should occur before, during, and after transport, and how to stay safe.
• Transporting of Pediatric Patients with Ebola: Keeping workers, children, and family members safe while handling inquiries and responding to calls related to pediatric patients (<18 years of age) under investigation (PUI) for Ebola. Managers should use this information to understand and explain to staff how to respond and stay safe. Individual providers can use this information to respond to patients suspected to have Ebola and to stay safe.

• Emergency Response Guidebook: U.S. Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration's Emergency Response Guidebook provides first responders with a go-to manual to help deal with hazmat transportation accidents during the critical first 30 minutes.
• Nerve Agent Information for EMS: This document provides a quick refresher on standard protocols for recognizing, treating, and protecting yourself from nerve agent exposures.
• PPE Requirments: OSHA's "Best Practices for Protecting EMS Responders during Treatment and Transport of Victims of Hazardous Substance Releases" details how to best protect providers transporting patients who have been exposed to hazardous substances.
• Fentanyl Exposure Prevention: The Center for Domestic Preparedness created a short video focused on Fentanyl awareness and best practices for avoiding exposure to synthetic opioids when responding to incidents.

• Mitigation of Occupational Violence to Firefighters and EMS Responders: A U.S. Fire Administration report, its purpose is to document the causes and risk factors of violence and mitigation opportunities to reduce and prevent violence to EMS responders. This literature review provides an assessment of existing literature and publicly available information on the issue of violence against firefighters and EMS responders.
• Violence Against EMS Providers 2019 National Survey: To better understand how violence impacts EMS practitioners and what EMS agencies are doing to protect their crews, the National Association of Emergency Medical Technicians (NAEMT) conducted a national survey of their members. The survey asked about: the types of violence experienced, the impact of violence on perceptions of safety on the job, practitioner knowledge and use of violence reporting systems, agency policies and policies to prevent violence, and practitioner wishes for violence prevention and protection training and education
• OSHA Executive Summary: Violence Against Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Responders: The purpose of this executive summary is to educate about the importance of including EMS responders within the scope that this OSHA action considers.
• Situational Awareness Part 1 & Part 2: Learn how to increase psychological situational awareness for your own and your crew's well-being.
• EMS Scene Safety/Vigilance: The If You See Something, Say Something^® campaign contains information about how responders can be safe and vigilant during response and help them report and respond to suspicious or dangerous activities.
• Mitigating the Risk and Impact of Assaults on EMS responders: The U.S. Fire Administration discusses the Stress and Violence to Fire-based EMS Responders (SAVER) checklist which helps departments assess and implement training, policies, and practices to mitigate assaults on EMS responders.
• Helping assaulted first responders during legal prosecutions: New study provides recommendations that address common obstacles to the legal prosecution of first responder assault cases.
• Violence is Never Okay Infographic.

• EMS Provider & Patient Safety in Ambulances: NHTSA collaborates with national organizations and Federal partners to provide EMS leaders with the traffic crash data, research and resources needed to promote improvements in ground ambulance safety.
• SafeAmbulances.org: The goal of SafeAmbulances.org is to compile information about ground ambulance standards and EMS safety into a single portal.
• U.S. Fire Administration Emergency Vehicle Safety Initiative: This guide provides best practices and recommendations for safer emergency vehicle and roadway incident response.
• Traffic Incident Management Systems: This manual provides technical guidance and training programs in traffic incident management for fire and emergency service providers. It includes case studies of roadway incidents that have taken firefighters' lives, highway scene safety survival basics, and incident command for roadway incidents.
• The Past, Present, and Future of Responder Safety at Roadway Incidents: This paper identifies what has been successful, what still needs to be done, and what is required to achieve the vision of a future where all responders working on the roadway are properly protected while they do their jobs.
• Alive on Arrival: This infographic contains tips for safe emergency vehicle operations.
• NHTSA SaferCar App: With NHTSA's free SaferCar app, you can get recall information sent to your phone.
• Emergency Response Guides for Electric Vehicles and Lithium-ion Batteries
• Interim Guidance for Electric and Hybrid-Electric Vehicles Equipped With High-Voltage Batteries
• 10 Practical Tips for Responding and Operating on Roadway and Highway Incidents
• Helmets and Head Protection for Roadway Incidents
• Webinar: Flipping OFF the Switch on HOT Emergency Medical Vehicle Responses!

• NHTSA Reporting Faulty Emergency Vehicle and Equipment: Use this link for the reporting of possible vehicle and equipment problems to the National Highway and Traffic Safety Administration.
• FDA Medical Device Reporting System: healthcare professionals who find a problem related to a medical device are encouraged to report medical device adverse events or product problems to the FDA through MedWatch, the FDA Safety Information and Adverse Event Reporting Program.

• Heat-Related Stress EMS-50: This document (EMS50) is intended to provide guidance and best practices for EMS clinicians adapting to extra PPE and higher temperature environments.
• Effect of Heat Stress and Dehydration on Cardiovascular Function
• NIOSH Heat Stress: This website contains an abundance of resources to help educate employees and employers about the risks and prevention strategies surrounding heat-related illnesses.
• NIOSH: Limiting Heat Burden While Wearing Personal Protective Equipment (PPE): Information about how to prevent heat-related illness when wearing PPE.
• OSHA-NIOSH Heat Safety Tool App: The OSHA-NIOSH Heat Safety Tool is a useful resource for planning outdoor work activities based on how hot it feels throughout the day. Featuring real-time heat index and hourly forecasts, specific to your location, as well as occupational safety and health recommendations from OSHA and NIOSH.
• OSHA Quick Card: Protecting Workers from Heat Stress
• QSun App: Download the free QSun App to get personalized recommendations, tailored to your skin type, on how to avoid sunburns and balance your vitamin D intake.
• US Department of Labor announces enhanced, expanded measures to protect workers from hazards of extreme heat, indoors and out