Brown Lawrence H, Blanchard Ian E
Mt. Isa Centre for Rural and Remote Health, Faculty of Medicine, Health and Molecular Sciences, James Cook University, Townsville, QLD, Australia.
Alberta Health Services Emergency Medical Services, Calgary, Alberta, Canada; University of Calgary, Department of Community Health Sciences, Alberta, Canada.
Am J Emerg Med. 2015 Feb;33(2):190-6. doi: 10.1016/j.ajem.2014.11.011. Epub 2014 Nov 15.
Modern emergency medical service (EMS) systems are vulnerable to both rising energy prices and potential energy shortages. Ensuring the sustainability of EMS systems requires an empirical understanding of the total energy requirements of EMS operations. This study was undertaken to determine the life cycle energy requirements of US EMS systems.
Input-output-based energy requirement multipliers for the US economy were applied to the annual budgets for a random sample of 19 metropolitan or county-wide EMS systems. Calculated per capita energy requirements of the EMS systems were used to estimate nationwide EMS energy requirements, and the leading energy sinks of the EMS supply chain were determined.
Total US EMS-related energy requirements are estimated at 30 to 60 petajoules (10(15) J) annually. Direct ("scope 1") energy consumption, primarily in the form of vehicle fuels but also in the form of natural gas and heating oil, accounts for 49% of all EMS-related energy requirements. The energy supply chain-including system electricity consumption ("scope 2") as well as the upstream ("scope 3") energy required to generate and distribute liquid fuels and natural gas-accounts for 18% of EMS energy requirements. Scope 3 energy consumption in the materials supply chain accounts for 33% of EMS energy requirements. Vehicle purchases, leases, maintenance, and repair are the most energy-intense components of the non-energy EMS supply chain (23%), followed by medical supplies and equipment (21%).
Although less energy intense than other aspects of the US healthcare system, ground EMS systems require substantial amounts of energy each year.
现代紧急医疗服务(EMS)系统容易受到能源价格上涨和潜在能源短缺的影响。确保EMS系统的可持续性需要对EMS运营的总能源需求有实证性的了解。本研究旨在确定美国EMS系统的生命周期能源需求。
将基于投入产出的美国经济能源需求乘数应用于19个大都市或全县范围的EMS系统随机样本的年度预算。用计算得出的EMS系统人均能源需求来估计全国范围内的EMS能源需求,并确定EMS供应链中的主要能源消耗环节。
估计美国每年与EMS相关的总能源需求为30至60拍焦耳(10¹⁵焦耳)。直接(“第1类”)能源消耗,主要形式为车辆燃料,但也包括天然气和取暖油,占所有与EMS相关能源需求的49%。能源供应链——包括系统电力消耗(“第2类”)以及生产和分销液体燃料及天然气所需的上游(“第3类”)能源——占EMS能源需求的18%。材料供应链中的第3类能源消耗占EMS能源需求的33%。车辆购置、租赁、维护和修理是无能源的EMS供应链中能源强度最高的部分(23%),其次是医疗用品和设备(21%)。
尽管地面EMS系统的能源强度低于美国医疗系统的其他方面,但每年仍需要大量能源。