The COVID-19 pandemic caused an unprecedented demand for critical care services. Centralized management of critical care resource allocation was necessary to ensure the overall quality of patient care. A centralized Critical Care Coordination Center (C4) for the state of Maryland is designed to ensure that critically ill patients receive the “Right Care, at the Right Time, at the Right Place.”
The C4 strives to establish a network of resources that allocate scarce healthcare resources--such as protocols, definite procedures, or care pathways—based on geography with the goal of providing higher-value care. The ultimate goal is to improve the quality of care, optimize and ensure timely critical care transport, reduce the length of stay, and reduce overall costs. Staffed at MIEMSS by a fellowship-trained / board-certified critical care physician and nationally registered paramedic or registered nurse coordinator, the desired end state is to create a nationally renowned critical care network that is strongly aligned with efficiency, sustainability, and improved patient outcomes.