Table 1.
Mean response times of CFR and ambulance crews by chief complaint, showing a statistically significant (at the 95% confidence level) mean decrease of 3 minutes and 8 seconds, comparing ambulance response times to CFR response times.
| Chief complaint | n a | Mean CFR response time/min | Mean ambulance response time/min | Difference in mean response time (ambulance – CFR)/min |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Generally illc | 8 (10) | 10:54 | 16:12 | 05:19 |
| Fallsb | 7 (8) | 09:37 | 21:34 | 11:57 |
| Unknown problemd | 1 (2) | 05:31 | 08:38 | 03:07 |
| Chest pain | 19 | 08:03 | 09:21 | 01:18 |
| Breathing problems | 15 | 07:59 | 11:47 | 03:48 |
| Convulsions | 8 | 06:47 | 05:47 | −01:00 |
| Unconscious | 7 | 05:34 | 09:39 | 04:05 |
| Fainting | 3 | 06:38 | 08:42 | 02:04 |
| Head pain | 3 | 10:44 | 10:27 | −00:17 |
| Stroke | 3 | 10:51 | 12:43 | 01:52 |
| Abdominal pain | 2 | 15:29 | 14:19 | 0 |
| Trauma | 2 | 06:34 | 09:07 | 02:33 |
| Allergy | 1 | 10:33 | 11:11 | 00:38 |
| Ambulance dispatch, 8 minutes | 1 | 01:53 | 07:55 | 06:02 |
| Back pain | 1 | 11:03 | 18:55 | 07:52 |
| Bleeding, nontraumatic | 1 | 12:48 | 13:15 | 00:27 |
| Burn | 1 | 06:01 | 05:05 | −00:56 |
| Diabetic problems | 1 | 03:49 | 04:14 | 00:25 |
| Life-threatening situation | 1 | 04:19 | 10:43 | 06:24 |
|
| ||||
| Overall | 85 (89) | 08:18 | 11:25 | 03:08 |
| Confidence interval at 95% Confidence level | [07:11, 09:25] | [09:38, 13:12] | [01:02, 05:14] | |
a n = number of calls analyzed in this category. Figures in parenthesis, (#), indicate the total number of calls recorded, as per Assumption (4) in Section 4. bOne ambulance arrival time was excluded as the vehicle arrived before the CFR allocation time. cTwo ambulance arrival times were excluded as the vehicles arrived before the CFR allocation times. dOne call attended only by CFRs.
Over the 89 calls, the CFR group achieved an average response time of 8 minutes and 18 seconds (95% CI 07:11 to 09:25). This compares to the ambulance crew average response time of 11 minutes and 25 seconds (95% CI 09:38 to 13:12), presenting a statistically significant 3 minutes and 8 seconds of (95% CI 01:02 to 05:14) additional delay. Further, CFRs were first on scene in 59 out of 85 calls (69%; data not shown).