ESO Solutions

Since its foundation in 1871, Bryan Fire Department in Bryan, Texas, has been steadily growing. The agency’s website reflects how far it has come since its inception. Bryan FD, one of the oldest departments  in the state of Texas, now has more than 100 full-time employees, including specialized teams trained in building collapse, confined space, high angle rescue, lost person/wilderness search, trench rescue, and water rescue.

 In 2008, Bryan took another step forward by choosing to implement a Fire/EMS-specific electronic patient care record (ePCR) system. “We needed something that was going to merge with the already expansive use of [our existing product] and still provide quality EMS documentation,” says Andrew Davis, EMS Chief at Bryan Fire Department. “That’s how we found ESO.”

“With ESO, it was obvious that someone had taken the time to develop software where data entry was specific to EMS.”

 Davis served in the Marine Corps until 1990, when he began working in EMS. In May of ’92, he applied for a job at Bryan Fire Department, where he has been working ever since. Davis’ biggest challenge as a Fire/EMS employee was to keep reaching for new opportunities. “You’re challenged to reach your goals,” says Davis, “but then once you reach them you think, what’s next?” For Davis, “my next step or opportunity was to move into administration.”

 As EMS Chief, Davis still concerns himself with moving forward and reaching his goals. But now, those goals center on providing quality patient care and support for paramedic crews. When asked what led Bryan FD to choose ESO solutions, Davis says: “It’s been a long road.”

 “ESO, in one fell swoop, was able to just go in and address all of our crew members’ complaints about how much time it was taking to enter data.”

Bryan Fire first started looking for computer driven data management systems around 1996. At that time, Davis says that a competitive market had yet to emerge for Fire/EMS data management software. According to Davis, the first provider that Bryan chose “did very little for Fire/EMS.” “With ESO,” he says, “it was obvious that someone had taken the time to develop software where data entry was specific to EMS.” 

 For Davis, there are many reasons why documentation using the ESO Pro™ ePCR Suite works for Bryan Fire Department, but he says that two stand out. “To me,” he says, “documentation is not as easy as pointing out one feature. There are so many complexities, but from an administration standpoint, integration and process improvement are two of the most important features of an ePCR.”

 By being able to interface with Bryan’s existing CAD vendor and providing a standardized, EMS-specific workflow that’s easy-to-use, he says that ESO Pro™ is the solution that Bryan FD was waiting for.

“With ESO, we can get the information, save it, and process it in a way that you can use later without spending more time on documentation and without the need to enter data repeatedly.”

 “ESO, in one fell swoop, was able to just go in and address all of our crew members’ complaints about how much time it was taking to enter data,” says Davis. “With ESO, we can get the information, save it, and process it in a way that you can use later without spending more time on documentation and without the need to enter data repeatedly — which brings the integrity of your data into question.”

 Chief Davis reports that having a standard medic workflow, quality management reporting functionalities, and a single point of data entry has ultimately led to an improved problem solving process and better patient care.

“[ESO Pro™] helps to develop and manage what we already have, without our having to add more staff to manage it.”

 “QM reporting is one way to ensure medics are delivering effective patient care. A process that reminds the Paramedic to enter essential data, and a standardized way to enter it, is essential!” says Davis. “You need quality data to help identify and solve problems. Having this process in a standardized and reliable process is crucial for an effective ePCR system”

In the end, Davis says that choosing ESO has markedly improved Bryan Fire Department’s quality management system, streamlined its data entry process, improved medic workflow, and integrated with the agency’s existing systems, all without requiring more time or more resources. “[ESO Pro™] helps to develop and manage what we already have,” says Davis, “without our having to add more staff to manage it.”