Equipos Médicos de Emergencia

EMTs are teams of health professionals (doctors, nurses, physiotherapists, paramedics, etc.) that provide direct clinical care to people affected by emergencies and disasters, and support local health systems.

EMT can be from both governmental (civil and military teams) and non-governmental organizations and their response can be national or international.

Traditionally, these teams have been focused on the management of trauma and surgical care, but the response to the Ebola outbreak demonstrated the value they can have in other contexts, such as epidemics and complex emergencies.

EMTs work under the overall guidance of the Classification and Minimum Standards for Emergency Medical Teams in sudden-onset disasters.

• Ensure that well-trained and self-sufficient emergency medical teams can provide a timely response to assist people affected by disasters and emergencies.
• Have global classification and national registration mechanisms available to facilitate the acceptance and deployment of emergency medical teams that meet the minimum requirements of EMT standards.
• Deployed government and agency medical teams will be able to prove that they are operating under the EMT system of standards and coordination.
• The creation of a global and regional EMT community that enables the exchange of knowledge and best practices among emergency medical teams.
• Have well-trained and self-sufficient national EMTs to ensure a rapid response in their own countries and in the region.

• Providing technical advice for:
  • The preparation of procedures and tools for requesting, accepting and receiving EMTs;
  • CICOM (Emergency Medical Team Coordination) integration with health EOCs;
  • Design and creation of EMTs at the national level;
  • Development of national registration mechanisms, both for national and international teams;
  • Optimization of immigration, customs and logistics processes to facilitate the deployment of EMTs.
• Strengthening national EMT capacities in the Americas.
• Serving as Secretariat for the EMT Regional Group in the Americas.
• Developing and supporting national workshops for EMT coordination.
• Organizing regional workshops for EMT coordinators.
• Maintaining a regional roster of EMT coordinators to be activated by the countries that need them.
• Supporting the preparation of national logistics cards for the deployment of EMTs.
• Promoting regional and global exchange of knowledge and good practices.

• Active participation in the American EMT Regional Group.
• Update national procedures and guidelines for requesting, accepting and receiving Emergency Medical Teams.
• Encourage the classification of national EMTs.
• Develop a national mechanism for the registration of national and international Emergency Medical Teams.
• Develop tools for the information management and coordination of EMTs.
• Exchange EMT experiences and good practices with the rest of the Region.

For additional information regarding the EMT initiative contact:  Luis de la Fuente Martin: emt@paho.org 

The global EMT initiative is implemented through the Global Secretariat and its three Regional Secretariats for Africa, Americas, South-East Asia, Europe, Eastern Mediterranean and Western Pacific.

The EMT initiative in the Americas is implemented through the Pan American Health Organization and comprised of the Regional EMT Secretariat, the Regional EMT Group, and the national EMT focal point network.

Documents:

• EMT Regional Meeting of the Americas: Report and Recommendations; 2017
• Implementation of the EMT initiative in the Americas 2020 (Eng)
• Implementación de la iniciativa EMT en las Américas 2020 (Spa)
• Implementação da iniciativa EMT nas Américas 2020 (Por)
• Mise en oeuvre de l’initiative EMT dans les Amériques 2020 (Fre) 

• Classification and Minimum Standards for Foreign Medical Teams in Sudden Onset Disasters (Blue Book)
• Nota Técnica sobre los requisitos mínimos de los Equipos Médicos de Emergencia (EMT) que responden a desastres y emergencias en las Américas (Spa)
• Nota Técnica Requisitos mínimos para as Equipes Médicas de Emergência (EMTs) que respondem a desastres e emergências nas Américas (Por)
• Note Technique Exigences minimales pour les équipes médicales d’urgence (EMT) intervenant dans les cas de catastrophes et urgences dans les Amériques (Fre) 

• EMT Regional Meeting of the Americas: Report and Recommendations; 2017
• Implementation of the EMT initiative in the Americas 2020 (Eng)
• Implementación de la iniciativa EMT en las Américas 2020 (Spa)
• Implementação da iniciativa EMT nas Américas 2020 (Por)
• Mise en oeuvre de l’initiative EMT dans les Amériques 2020 (Fre) 

• Health response to the earthquake in Haiti
• Technical note with minimum requirements for EMTs responding to disasters in the Americas (Only in Spanish)
• Classification and Minimum Standards for Foreign Medical Teams in Sudden Onset Disasters
• Spanish Cooperation operation guidelines for direct health response in disasters (Only in Spanish)
• Resolution CD53.R9 "Plan of Action for the Coordination of Humanitarian Assistance in the Americas"
• Summary from the Global EMT Meeting - Panama 2015