MEDICAL INVOLVEMENT IN PREHOSPITAL CARE - A TRANSATLANTIC COMPARISON

The role of doctors in prehospital care in the United Kingdom and the USA was compared using information obtained from a visit to the of Hou ston emergency medical (Houston, Texas) and from a review of published reports. The involvement of full time specialist emergency medical se rvices physicians has been crucial to the development of improved stan dards of practice within American prehospital care. The specialty of a ccident and emergency medicine should support provision of medical adv ice to the ambulance services by closer liaison with ambulance service trusts and the formalisation of training in prehospital care to speci alist registrars.