Innovating Emergency Medical Response: The View From Reno And Portland

A novel way to help young men growing up in communities in which concentrated poverty, violence and unemployment are well-documented barriers to health and longevity: male youth of color are trained to be the emergency response team to help stabilize street victims before doctors or nurses begin procedures.

The highest hospital costs come from preventable emergency room visits. A doctor in Camden developed a home visit program which gives better and cheaper care.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, drug overdoses are the leading cause of injury-related mortality. Naxolone, a drug used to revive overdose victims, is only available by prescription. However, private organizations have distributed Naxolone kits nationally, showing that the drug can save lives when it is more readily accessible.

In Nepal, a controversial drug is proving to be effective in saving mother's lives. It's the only shelf-stable, easy-to-administer solution to curbing postpartum hemorrhage. In trials, misoprostol is shown to save the lives of women who live far from medical care facilities. Since Nepal allowed use of the drug, postpartum hemorrhage has fallen from the leading cause of maternal death to number two.

American humanitarian aid and programs by the United Nations have proved beneficial to equip Middle Eastern refugees with resources for self-settlement outside of camps. The self-settlement model has empowered refugees to become more productive members of society when they return home.

Residents who use a disproportionate amount of health care, or super utilizers, are a high cost for the system. A hospital in Baltimore is following the example of other hospitals and focusing on the underlying problems of super utilizers to reduce emergencies and save costs.

The city of Trenton is trying to reduce gun violence. In Philadelphia, the Healing Hurt People is a hospital-based violence intervention program that employs trauma counselors to help patients suffering from gun violence.

Social programs are seen as a fiscal burden on the U.S. However, investment in effective social programs saves taxpayer dollars so evaluating the performance of federal programs could help Congress act more responsibly.

Hospitals in the U.S. throw out huge amounts of supplies and equipment, and third-world hospitals need it. Many organizations help bridge the gap to transport supplies, but end up donating unusable equipment - teaching hospitals what to donate as well as knowing where the equipment is going are just some of the ways that efficiency can be improved.

Refugee camps typically look like a prison with squalid conditions and barbed wire tops. By contrast, the Kilis refugee camp in Turkey is orderly, secure, and clean; has schools for children; has grocery stores, and is powered with electricity. The camp is not run by the United Nations, but rather it is Turkey’s Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency that oversees every detail and pours billions of dollars into maintaining it every year.