SINGAPORE: Paramedics from the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) attending to medical cases will be progressively equipped with body-worn cameras (BWC) from Feb 1 (Friday).
By 2020, SCDF expects to roll out the compact device worn over the ear to all its paramedics.
These cameras will “improve the quality and effectiveness” of SCDF’s emergency medical services (EMS), said SCDF.
The recordings will be used for coaching and training purposes, and to fine-tune SCDF’s medical procedures, it added in a Facebook post on Thursday.
In the long-term, SCDF intends to incorporate live-streaming capabilities into the cameras to allow off-site doctors to provide medical advice to paramedics attending to complex cases on the ground if needed.
(Image: SCDF)
It will also “help provide for greater accountability with regard to the interactions between ambulance crew members and EMS patients”, added SCDF.
However, it assured that paramedics will stop recording in certain situations to respect the privacy of the patients.
“ROBUST CONTROL MEASURES”
“Paramedics will stop recording in certain situations to respect the privacy of patients, such as maternity cases,” SCDF said.
“This is part of our efforts to use technology to enhance our emergency ambulance operations and improve patient outcomes,” said Assistant Commissioner Yazid Abdullah, director of SCDF’s medical department.
Robust robust control measures to regulate the use of the BWCs and the recorded data, have been put in place, he added.
For example, only authorised personnel will be allowed to handle the collection, storage and use of the data, SCDF said.
“Any access to the data will be logged to enable audit checks. The data will be encrypted for added security.”
The data will also be deleted after 90 days from the date of recording, unless there is a need to retain it, such as to assist the police with investigations.
Any officer who misuses the body-worn cameras or data will be dealt with severely, added SCDF.
