Following an emergency incident, critically injured patients are often treated by multiple healthcare professionals from Emergency Medical Teams (EMTs) over a short period of time. The process of transportation from the site of an incident to definitive health care therefore depends on coordination and information-sharing which is reliant on the use of Information and Communication Technology (ICT). ICT is essential to ensure the necessary organizational responses to emergency situations by facilitating information-sharing, sustained coordination and collaboration to protect and save the injured. This literature review provides a broad overview which can facilitate an understanding of the experiences between EMTs in emergencies using ICT by systematically finding, reviewing, assessing and synthesizing current evidence. A systematic search guided by PRISMA was performed using relevant electronic databases and manual searches. Studies were limited to original research and only articles published between 2009 and 2021 were included. This review highlights that only a limited number of publications reported ICT use between EMTs in different emergencies in a single study. Fifteen papers were found which reported the experience of coordination and communication using ICT between EMTs in emergency situations in different countries. The findings of these papers indicate that although communication systems during an emergency are crucial, poor quality telecommunications infrastructure affected by difficult weather conditions often led to communication failures between respondents. The majority of these studies highlighted that the use of mobile phones is preferred over other systems due to their multi-functionality. Some of the studies reported issues in coordination between EMTs in which the limited information shared between EMTs affected their preparedness. Furthermore, the review shows that disaster simulation exercises between EMTs are insufficient and require improvement. Future research needs to include the perspectives of emergency operations centre staff along with nurses, physicians and paramedics in a single study to comprehensively explore the EMT response in emergency situations.

There is a lack of knowledge regarding communication and information exchange between the emergency medical teams (EMTs) during emergencies, particularly in the Riyadh region of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA). The aim of this study is to explore EMTs’ experiences of communication and information exchange during difficult emergency situations in the city of Riyadh.A qualitative exploratory study was undertaken to explore the experiences of 62 respondents from the Saudi Red Crescent Authority (SRCA) and emergency departments (EDs): a total of 18 were SRCA staff (three call takers, four dispatchers, three field supervisors and eight paramedics), and a total of 44 from hospital EDs, comprising 19 ED nurse managers, 12 ED physician consultants and 13 ED paramedics. Semi-structured interviews were held with the participants, who all had the experience of responding to emergencies and had the authority to communicate with one another. The interviews were tape-recorded and transcribed verbatim and the transcripts were analysed using Braun and Clarke’s thematic analysis [1]. NVIVO 11 was used to aid data management.Three themes were identified comprising central factors that influence coordination and communication between the participants. These themes were (1) the emotional impact on SRCA staff performance, (2) the effectiveness of the emergency response, and (3) perceptions of emergencies preparation. The first theme highlighted important factors related to emotional and well-being, which impact the performance of the SRCA operation centre staff and have an impact on the information shared with other relevant staff. In the second theme, issues that emerged that related to the effectiveness of the emergency response, coordination and communication between the EMTs were highlighted to be limited in effectiveness. Although several communication systems were used, some of them were not formally sanctioned and some were technical issues related to the systems used. The third theme explored participants’ perceptions of emergencies preparation, and again the findings demonstrated limited evidence of disaster management training or preparation particularly between EMTs. The training in communication among EMTs staff in preparing for disasters was similarly found to have deficits and could be improved. Finally, the findings from this study demonstrated that the level of debriefing that was put in place following an incident could be substantially improved.Communication between EMTs not only involves the use of advanced technology but also requires improvements in coordinated communication within and between EMTs in relation to an effective response to emergencies and disasters. This could be achieved if the directors, managers and policymakers appreciated more fully the importance of the factors to be considered in relation to the effective use of ICT, the adverse impact of the ineffective use of communications systems, and how the coordination of services could be improved during emergency situations.