For purposes of this chapter:
(1) “Administrator” means the program chief of the paramedic services responsible for advanced life support and the administration of this chapter.
(2) “Advanced life support” (ALS) means as defined in § 9702 of this title.
(3) “Basic life support” (BLS) means as defined in § 9702 of this title.
(4) “Board” means the Board of Medical Licensure and Discipline.
(5) “Certification” means original certification as a paramedic by the Board of Medical Licensure and Discipline.
(6) “Community paramedicine” means a form of mobile-integrated healthcare that is a provider-led, patient-centered delivery care model using appropriately-trained paramedics or other emergency medical services providers in an expanded role to render care, facilitate a more efficient delivery of care, and enhance access to community resources that address the social determinants of health.
(7) “County” or “counties” mean, singularly or collectively, New Castle, Kent, and Sussex Counties of this State.
(8) “County paramedic service” means the paramedic service operated pursuant to this chapter by a county with its own employees or under contract with another governmental entity.
(9) “Criminal history” means a person’s entire criminal history record from the State Bureau of Identification and the person’s entire federal criminal history record maintained by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
(10) “Decertification” means the cancellation or revocation of the certificate issued by Board of Medical Licensure and Discipline to a paramedic.
(11) “Department” means the Delaware Department of Health and Social Services.
(12) “Emergency medical services (EMS) provider” means individual providers certified by the Delaware State Fire Prevention Commission or the Office of EMS, or emergency medical dispatchers certified by the National Academy of Emergency Medical Dispatch.
(13) “Emergency medical services (EMS) provider agency” means a provider agency certified by the Delaware State Fire Prevention Commission or the Office of EMS, or an emergency medical dispatch center under contract with the Department of Safety and Homeland Security.
(14) “Emergency medical unit” means an ambulance, rescue vehicle, or any other specialized vehicle staffed by EMS providers and other certified or licensed medical care providers, and utilized solely for providing mobile pre-hospital care and other emergency medical treatment.
(15) “Handler” means the police officer who is the handler of a police dog receiving emergency medical services under this chapter.
(16) “Medical command facility” means the distinct unit within a hospital which meets the operational, staffing, and equipment requirements established by the Division of Public Health for providing medical control to the EMS providers. Any hospital that operates an emergency medical facility and desires to be designated as a medical command facility shall maintain and staff the facility on its premises and at its own expense with the exception of base station communication devices which shall be an authorized shared expense pursuant to the provisions of this chapter.
(17) “Medical control” means an order or directive given to an EMS provider by an authorized medical control physician. These orders or directives shall normally be provided from a specifically authorized and designated medical command facility with such medical supervision supplying professional support to the EMS provider through radio or telephonic communication for on-scene and in-transit basic and advanced life support services.
(18) “Medical control physician” means any physician certified by the American Board of Emergency Medicine or the American Board of Osteopathic Emergency Medicine, or their successors, or a physician certified in Advanced Trauma Life Support (ATLS), Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS) and Pediatric Advanced Life Support (PALS) or other courses approved by the Office of Emergency Medical Services who is credentialed by the hospital within which a medical command facility is located and who is authorized by the medical command facility to give medical control commands via radio or other telecommunication devices to an EMS provider. When a medical control physician establishes contact with an EMS provider, the EMS provider shall, solely for the purpose of compliance with the Medical Practice Act [Chapter 17 of Title 24], be considered to be operating under the license of said medical control physician.
(19) “Mobile-integrated healthcare” means an expanded role for a paramedic or other emergency medical services provider that is a coordinated, patient-centered, evidence-based holistic model of care designed to use collaborative, interdisciplinary teams to serve patient needs at the most appropriate level of care at a safe location convenient to the patient.
(20) “Mobile-integrated healthcare or community paramedicine medical director” means an individual who is employed to work in a mobile-integrated healthcare or community paramedicine program and who meets the requirements to be a medical control physician or be board certified or eligible in the individual’s medical specialty.
(21) “Mobile resources” means the ability of a paramedic or other emergency medical services provider to connect directly with members of the healthcare team via technology, such as telehealth, that allows for real time discussion of the patient’s healthcare needs and possible visual examination of a specific concern.
(22) “Office” means the Office of Emergency Medical Services, of the Division of Public Health, Department of Health and Social Services.
(23) “Paramedic staff hour” means 1 full hour of a paramedic on duty.
(24) “Police dog” means a dog that has been trained by a supervising K-9 trainer or K-9 trainer and is handled by a police officer handler in the performance of their duties used for law-enforcement purposes or any law-enforcement related activities.
(25) a. “Pre-hospital care” means any emergency medical service, including advanced life support, rendered by an emergency medical unit before and during transportation to a hospital or other facility, and upon arrival at the facility until such care is assumed by the facility’s staff.
b. “Pre-hospital care” does not include the care provided by a paramedic or other emergency medical services provider employed by a mobile-integrated healthcare or community paramedicine program.
(26) “Service and/or training reciprocity agreements” means written agreements negotiated between 2 counties or between a county and an adjoining state or a governmental entity of an adjoining state and approved pursuant to the provisions of this chapter which provide for the scheduled delivery of paramedic services by paramedics to citizens of this State or a neighboring state by personnel certified to render such services by this State or a neighboring state, or such similar agreements as are required by and between the counties of this State, in order to effectively and efficiently deliver paramedic services. Such agreements may also include provisions that provide for the temporary rotation of paramedics or equipment between the counties of this State in order to provide such personnel with proper experience and training opportunities, address seasonal demands, or adequately respond to a disaster or severe emergency incident. All such agreements shall include any financial terms, or other considerations included as part of the agreement.
(27) “State EMS Medical Director” means a physician who is board-certified by the American Board of Emergency Medicine or by the Osteopathic Board of Emergency Medicine and who shall be the chief physician for the statewide emergency medical system and under whose license all EMS providers shall operate for the purpose of delivering the standing orders of the statewide standard treatment protocol.
(28) “Statewide ALS treatment protocol” means written and uniform treatment and care plans for emergency and critical patients statewide that constitute the standing orders of paramedics. The treatment protocol for advanced life support must be approved and signed by the State EMS Medical Director and the Director of the Division of Public Health or, if the Director is not a licensed physician or advanced practice registered nurse, a licensed physician or advanced practice registered nurse designated by the Director and employed by the Division. The treatment protocol shall be prepared by the Board of Medical Licensure and Discipline. In preparing and, from time to time, amending the statewide ALS treatment protocol, the Board shall consult with the State EMS Medical Director and the ALS Standards Committee of the Board of Medical Licensure and Discipline.
(29) “Statewide BLS treatment protocol” means written and uniform treatment and care plans for emergency and critical patients statewide that constitute the standing orders of basic life support providers. The treatment protocol shall be prepared by the Board of Medical Licensure and Discipline. The treatment protocol for basic life support must be approved and signed by the State EMS Medical Director, the BLS Medical Director and the Director of the Division of Public Health or, if the Director is not a licensed physician or advanced practice registered nurse, a licensed physician or advanced practice registered nurse designated by the Director and employed by the Division. The treatment protocol for basic life support shall be adopted and enacted by the State Fire Prevention Commission. In preparing and, from time to time, amending statewide BLS treatment protocol, the Board shall consult with the EMS Medical Director, the ALS Standards Commission and the State Fire Prevention Commission. The Statewide BLS treatment protocol shall be adopted by June 30, 2000, and in use by all EMS providers by January 1, 2002.
(30) “Team-based, patient-centered delivery model” means a healthcare delivery model that includes multiple levels of providers to meet all of a patient’s needs and to promote wellness.