ABSTRACT

I. INTRODUCTION The organization of prehospital trauma care and the role of the physician in emergency medical services (EMS) systems differ from country to country [1,2]. These variations may be related to available medical resources, legal aspects, educational level of physicians and nonmedical personnel, geographic circumstances, and last but not least, tradition, interest, and commitment. In some systems, medical interventions that are the responsibility of physicians within the hospital are performed by nonphysicians outside the hospital.