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Toward a Better Understanding of “Availability”

High Performance EMS

Better Reporting With an increase in calls for service and longer hospital delays more commonplace, ambulance crews can reasonably be expected to be more active. In the 1980’s, Jack Stout introduced the idea of Unit Hour Utilization (UHU) as “ the cost of doing business.”

UHU
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Improving EMS Deployment Performance

High Performance EMS

For any ambulance call, there are two potential segments of travel. If that distance is shortened by routinely prepositioning the ambulance closer to that next call, the response will automatically be safer for the crew and the public at large. EMS agencies typically target a UHU of between 0.30

UHU
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Passing ‘Fast’ for ‘Appropriate’ Responses

High Performance EMS

However, matching a paramedic QRV, or another supervisor, with that nearest BLS resource provided that it can be completed in 5 minutes less time than the closest ALS ambulance could be an acceptable solution. Assigning an appropriate unit for this call can actually reduce the effective activity, or UHU, of other resources.

BLS
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Optimizing Demand Forecasts

High Performance EMS

Part of his justification is the average busy time of a unit being about an hour and to simplify the calculation of a Unit Hour Utilization (UHU). It is also common for ambulances to be busy longer than an hour in our post-pandemic world.

UHU