Gaston Co. EMS one of three agencies across country to get this lifesaving technology

GASTON COUNTY, N.C. ( QUEEN CITY NEWS ) – Gaston County Emergency Medical Services is one of only three agencies in the country to get a newly developed cardiac monitoring device.

The technology is going to help first responders better save lives. The Lifepak 35 is a more than $50,000 heart monitor. Gaston County EMS now has 38 of them. The county is making a $2 million investment in the technology.

“Anytime we have the opportunity to be the first at something, we try to seize that opportunity and in this case, we are going to be the first in North Carolina to put the Lifepak 35 into service,” said Deputy Chief Jamie McConnell.

One of the most exciting features is that the machine constantly monitors a patient’s heart rate.

“We’re able to really live time track what’s going on in your body so we can more quickly treat it,” said Taylor Forte, public educator for Gaston County EMS. “We can also look at it more in-depth on the screen rather than just looking at a printout.”

If there’s a shockable rhythm, first responders can defibrillate the patient. Before, they would have to stop CPR every two minutes to analyze the rhythm.

“Having that ability to have every second count and shave off seconds in our ability to discover things going wrong and track those trending vitals to see if what we’re doing is helping them and if it’s not being able to really switch it up and go to a different way of treating them is giving us a better chance at treating our patient,” said Forte.

The Lifepak 35 also gives a more accurate blood pressure read and allows for continuous temperature monitoring. A new feature called LifeNet allows hospital workers to tap into the system.

“They can get a real-time visual of what’s going on in the patient’s heart, so they can better prepare their surgeons and their doctors,” said Forte.

About 200 first responders are learning to use the machine. Some of them took part in a training Thursday night where representatives from the manufacturer Stryker demonstrated all it can do.

“The new technology that this offers and the promise of future developments with this technology the way they’ve allowed it to adapt to new technologies, it’s definitely going to increase survivability for our patients,” said McConnell.

The plan is to roll out the technology on September 3.

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