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Dr. Cynthia Simmons
Dr. Simmons began her career in EMS in 1994 during her training as a
resident in Emergency Medicine. Dr. Simmons grew up in El Paso,
Texas and graduated with honors from Texas Tech University. Upon
completing her undergraduate degree in Cell and Molecular Biology,
she attended the UT Southwestern Medical School in Dallas. She then
went on to complete a residency in Emergency Medicine at the
University of Florida in Jacksonville. She returned to the DFW area
in 1998 and has actively practiced Emergency Medicine in Arlington
since then. Currently, she is an Attending Physician at the Medical
Center of Arlington. She has served as a Clinical Associate
Professor at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center
teaching Emergency Medicine at Parkland Hospital. She serves as the
Medical Director for the AEMS System and the Grand Prairie Fire
Department, Public Health Authority for the City of Arlington, and a
full time mom to two small children.
No Excuses, Hands Only CPR is a
community-wide initiative designed to improve out of hospital
cardiac arrest survival rates in the City of Arlington by
implementing all currently recommended American Heart resuscitation
interventions within the EMS system and coordinating post
resuscitation care at hospitals. This System-of-Care approach
incorporates methods to optimize care during and after cardiac
arrest resuscitation. The program has key community components
including the development of a public service announcements of
Compression Only CPR and the teaching of this Hands Only CPR by the
Arlington EMS System.
When an adult suddenly collapses, immediate chest compressions, No
Excuses, Hands Only CPR can make the biggest difference in
surviving a cardiac arrest. Nearly anyone can do this. Together, we
can make Arlington not just a great place to live, but also a great
place to survive cardiac arrest
Eight areas of service are included in the responsibilities and
duties of the Medical Director and comprise the clinical components
of the EMS System.
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Medical Director |
The Medical Director for the Arlington EMS System (AEMS)
is the physician responsible for comprehensive medical
oversight of all clinical care provided in the EMS System.
The Arlington EMS System includes the Arlington Fire
Department and the ambulance contractor, American Medical
Response. Dr. Cynthia Simmons, MD, FACEP has been the
Medical Director for the Arlington EMS System since 2006.
The system is comprised of over 600 individual providers and
answers over 36,000 calls for service every year.
Most recently, Dr. Simmons has provided medical oversight
for the Office of Special Events within the Arlington Fire
Department providing expertise in the medical operations of
special events. As Medical Director, she has has
responsibilities including medical operations plans for the
Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, The Rangers Ballpark in
Arlington, Superbowl XLV, the 2010 World Series in
Arlington. |
| Clinical
Practice of Medicine |
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Clinical care is the primary function of an EMS System.
Medical care of patients that encounter any component of
the EMS System should be scientifically and
operationally sound and appropriate for the patient
condition and provider capabilities. The summation of
clinical expectations of all providers and organizations
in the System are contained in the AEMS Clinical
Protocols and Policies. The protocols and policies are
the end result of review of clinical evidence,
professional practice guidelines, and operational
capabilities.
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| Quality Improvement/Performance Assessment |
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Quality Improvement and Performance Assessment of the EMS System
includes prospective, retrospective and concurrent review of all
aspects of system functioning. These aspects potentially impact
patient care including system design and resource deployment,
clinical performance, provider education, equipment implementation,
response intervals, patient outcome, patient and provider
satisfaction and participation in EMS benchmarking activities. The
Medical Director serves at the chair for all AEMS quality assurance
functions.
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| Healthcare Provider Education |
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Education of EMS Providers and system participants (Hospitals,
Medical Community) is developed as part of an integrated process
between Quality Improvement and Performance Assessment findings,
individual needs and specific educational requirements of
licensing/certifying agencies. Dr. Simmons is responsible for
approval of all system clinical education programs, with the
approval of the Emergency Physicians Advisory Board as indicated, as
well as delivery of specific targeted programs to designated
providers within the System.
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| Regulatory Functions |
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The Medical Director of an EMS System is required to perform several
administrative regulatory functions. The structure of these
processes are defined and supported by state statute within the
Texas Health & Safety Code and The Texas Medical Board Rules,
Chapter 197.
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| Public Education and Outreach |
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An
important part of any emergency health services system is informing
and educating the public about issues that may pose a threat to
health or safety. The Arlington Medical Director also currently
serves as the Public Health Authority for the City of
Arlington. The office has provided the city of Arlington with a
response plans for events such as the novel H1N1 Influenza virus
response, CPR Arlington, and the new
No Excuses, Hands only CPR
programs.
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| Research |
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Clinical Research conducted in the EMS System is an important part
of evaluating the evidence associated with field clinical care.
Research may be specific to the EMS System or in collaboration with
other healthcare entities.
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Advocacy |
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Advocacy includes efforts to promote concepts of street
medicine and the EMS profession as a whole. It includes
participating in local, state, regional and national
initiatives that improve the practice of medicine,
patient outcomes, and professional stature of the EMS
System. Initiatitives within the Arlington EMS
system include the support of local and coordination of
a comprehensive system in the City of Arlington for
patients with chest pain to be managed at hospitals
accredited by the Society of Chest Pain Centers.
The city wide coordination has shown to improve
survival and outcomes for patients experiencing an acute
coronary syndrome.
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The Arlington EMS System also participates in community
wide coordination, education and treatment for patients
having an acute stroke and transports these patients
only to JCAHO accredited Stroke Centers.
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- Currently, with the new
No Excuses, Hands Only CPR program, the AEMS System
hopes to improve to survivability of patients having a cardiac
arrest within the City of Arlington.
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| Practice Management and Collaboration |
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Comprehensive Medical Oversight of a large multi-agency system
requires certain reliable, consistent business management processes
that facilitate an integrated, collaborative approach as well as a
responsive system that can address the needs of all involved in
delivery of care within the System
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