The National Association of EMS Physicians (NAEMSP) held its annual meeting in Tampa, Florida, last month. As one of the largest assemblies of emergency medical services (EMS) personnel in the nation, the NAEMSP Annual Meeting hosts a New Speaker Series that enables new and emerging voices in the EMS community to engage an international audience on a topic of their choice.
In 2023, this competition attracted nearly 60 submissions from across the nation, of which eight individuals were selected as finalists to deliver talks at this year’s meeting.
Michael Spigner, MD, EMT-P, assistant professor and director of prehospital medicine informatics, was awarded Best Speaker for his talk titled, “Human Factors in Rational Protocol Design.”
Clinical protocols are central to the practice of paramedicine in the United States. While protocols exist to try to improve quality of care, reduce variation in practice, and ensure that evidence is used to guide patient care, gaps between prescribed and actual actions are common. “It is tempting to believe that protocol non-adherence is the fault of the individual provider, but systemic failure in protocol design is the more frequent culprit,” he notes.
In his talk, Dr. Spigner provided multiple examples of how actual patient care protocols have been amended to improve adherence by optimizing the interaction between the protocol and end user.
“This subject is universally relevant, immediately actionable, and directly related to the quality and safety of care provided to patients,” says Spigner.
Dr. Spigner—who is also an Officer for the Wisconsin chapter of the NAEMSP—has been invited to present his lecture in full at the NAEMSP’s 2024 Annual Meeting in Austin, Texas.
Dr. Spigner was a practicing EMS provider for seven years before completing his medical training at the Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell. He maintained a strong interest in prehospital medicine throughout his residency training at the University of Cincinnati, when he served as Assistant Medical Director for several agencies in the Greater Cincinnati area. He also practiced as a flight physician and served as Assistant Medical Director of UC Air Care & Mobile Care. Dr. Spigner received his fellowship training in EMS at the University of New Mexico and is board certified in emergency medicine and EMS.
Within Dane County, Dr. Spigner is Medical Director for Belleville EMS, as well as Brooklyn Fire & EMS.
About the NAESMP
Since its inception in 1984, the NAEMSP has grown from a handful of dedicated founders to over 2,000 physicians, paramedics, nurses, administrators, educators, researchers and key EMS personnel. As part of its ongoing commitment to improving out-of-hospital emergency medical care, NAEMSP promotes meetings, publications and products that connect, serve and educate its members. In addition, the Association acts as a resource and advocate of EMS related decisions in cooperation with organizations throughout the country and the community at large, including agencies of the Federal Government.