At its September 18, 2019 business meeting, the Western Regional Emergency Medical Advisory Committee (WREMAC) adopted updates to their Policy #2013-1: Provider Privileges and Continuing Medical Education. No significant changes were made to the policy; rather, a few items were clarified to better help providers and agencies understand WREMAC expectations.
Here is a brief overview of the changes:
- The policy now clarifies that reports are due to the EMS program agency no later than June 30 each year.
- The policy emphasizes that individual providers are responsible for meeting regional requirements. Agencies are responsible for monitoring provider compliance and taking appropriate action when providers are not compliant with the policy at any time.
- Previously, there was uncertainty as to when a provider had to be registered with the EMS Program Agency. This has now been clarified: “No provider shall provide stand‐alone patient care with an agency in this region until the agency has validated his/her eligibility for credentialing set forth in this policy and registered the provider with their agency using the EMS Program Agency’s approved format (paper or electronic).”
- The “Didactic Requirements” now reflect protocol updates/exams (as required by NYS and/or the region)
- The “Skill Requirements” were updated to match the skills within the BLS and ALS protocols.
- “WREMAC Approved Courses” now states the WREMAC’s position on certifications that use the terminology “recommended renewal date” rather than “expiration date”. In this region, a recommended renewal date is considered to be the same as an expiration date.