Benefits

Prehospital personnel are the first providers of care to patients suffering from cardiac emergencies. The role of EMS in the system-of-care for these patients is crucial and often sets the course for the patient's outcome. Understanding the key role EMS plays is a central element of Mission: Lifeline.

When you participate in the American Heart Association's Mission: Lifeline program, you're not out there alone: 

• Mission: Lifeline links EMS providers, referring (non-PCI) hospitals and receiving (PCI-capable) hospitals in a coordinated system of cardiac care
• Mission: Lifeline assists your agency in getting the feedback you need to understand how the system of care is working for the patients your teams have cared for
• Mission: Lifeline provides evidence-based metrics to measure the system's performance and provides your crews with life-saving cardiac care tools that can add confidence and improve patient outcomes.

​Mission: Lifeline helps increase prehospital providers’ effectiveness by providing tools and strategies to:

• Further equip and train EMTs and paramedics in the recognition of myocardial infarction (STEMI and non-ST-elevation acute coronary syndrome or NSTE-ACS).
• Provide training and support to acquire and interpret 12-lead electrocardiograms (ECGs).
• Develop protocols to transfer patients with positive ECG results and out-of-hospital cardiac arrest victims to the closest appropriate hospitals.
• Help healthcare providers administer preliminary treatment using the latest guidelines.
• Work with hospital personnel to coordinate future patient transfers and exchange feedback.

In addition, Mission: Lifeline:

• Provides national recognition for EMS agencies that meet high standards of performance. 
• Streamlines already efficient systems that accelerate the decision-making process when treating heart attack patients with life-threatening conditions. 

 

Get Started Today

You are eligible to participate no matter where you are located in the U.S.

2018 EMS Recognition Criteria