Overview
Data Storm is a comprehensive, user-friendly data collection tool designed to help emergency personnel record and monitor data from pre-hospital medical emergencies. Data Storm allows emergency personnel to track patient information, rescue-scene information, patient vitals and the therapy administered, call-response time, and patient outcome. In addition, this program tracks data on automated external defibrillator (AED) patients (including ECG playback with or without audio), user training and evaluation data, and device-deployment specifics. Data Storm is a great tool for helping organisation benchmark the value of their emergency response programs, making it useful in justifying expenditures for everything from AEDs to bandages.

Ease of Use
Data Storm offers several ease-of-use features for maximum efficiency and effectiveness. These features include a single screen with multiple tabs (rather than a multiple-screen layout), customisation capabilities to meet individual needs, preconfigured reporting options, AED deployment tracking, and training management.

Single-Screen Program.
Data Storm's single-screen design maximise the efficiency and accuracy of data input. This single screen also includes an ECG pull-up, to allow the user to analyse the electrocardiogram information collected on an AED for sudden cardiac arrest patients. Unlike multiple-screen programs, users can't get lost in Data Storm while entering data, since there is only one screen required to get the job done. The kind of information collected in each tab is outlined below.

Single-Screen Tab Options

Customisation Options
Data Storm offers users the ability to update and enhance the program without requiring any modifications by Survivalink. This provides each user with the opportunity to customise to their specific protocol, geographic location and required reporting needs.

Preconfigured Global Reporting Capabilities
Data Storm was designed to include several reporting capabilities, allowing for consistent and concise data collection and reporting at international, national, state and local levels. This design includes Utstein-style reporting, National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration (NHTSA) codes, and International Classification of Disease (ICD) codes, revisions 9 and 10. These capabilities are further outlined below.

Utstein Style.
Utstein reporting was developed to document both in-hospital and out-of-hospital cardiac arrests. By using the Utstein-style guidelines for reporting, emergency care responders will be able to understand comparisons between different EMS providers.

The Utstein style was defined by a task force of representatives from the American Heart Association®, the European and Australian Resuscitation Councils, and the Canadian Heart and Stroke Foundation. To define these guidelines, this group assembled in 1990 at a historic abbey, known as the Utstein Kloster, on a small island off the coast of Norway.

International Classification of Disease (ICD) Codes, Revisions 9 and 10.
ICD and related health problem codes were developed as a disease classification standard to maintain consistency in international reporting. The ICD codes are used by federal, provincial and territorial governments. The classification includes diseases, injuries and causes of death, as well as external causes of injury and poisoning.

Data Storm has 17 preconfigured reports that support these different classification systems for incidents associated with sudden cardiac arrest, as well as for evaluation reporting related to patients, devices and users. Specifics on the reports are as follows.

Utstein Reports (Sudden Cardiac Arrest).
These reports offer the capability to compile, analyse and share data with other organisations that evaluate pre-hospital data relating to SCA:

· Ventricular Fibrillation with Bystander CPR.
· Ventricular Fibrillation without Bystander CPR.
· Ventricular Tachycardia with Bystander CPR.
· Ventricular Tachycardia without Bystander CPR.
· Asystole with Bystander CPR.
· Asystole without Bystander CPR.

Evaluation Reports (Incident, Device and User).
These reports offer the capability to evaluate and continually improve user response times and effectiveness:

· Dispatch Summary.
· Incident Summary.
· ECG/EKG Summary.
· Patient Follow-up.
· AED Tracking.
· Patient Demographics.
· EMS Demographics.
· AED Evaluation.
· Training Summary.
· System Response.
· AED Optimisation.

AED Deployment Tracking
Data Storm offers the ability to evaluate AED deployment by tracking the AED location and the assigned operator. This includes tracking AED placement in conjunction with the locations of sudden cardiac arrest incidents and associated response times. Effectively tracking AED locations can help optimise their deployment.

Training Management
Data Storm offers the capability to manage operation information that includes data on each individual, who trained them, when they were trained, the length of training and the date when the next training session is due. Certificates can be printed for all individuals who successfully complete AED training. These certificates can be printed with or without a predefined border.

DATABASE COMPATIBILITY
Data Storm is compatible with Windows® 95, 98, 2000 and NT 4.0. Data Storm is also compatible with other database programs that use the Open Database Connectivity (ODBC) standard.

What is ODBC?
ODBC (Open Database Connectivity) is a standard method of sharing data from one database program to another. It allows Data Storm to share data with other databases including Microsoft® Access, Microsoft FoxPro, Microsoft SQL Server™, HP/HeartStream® CodeRunner™, Medtronic Physio-Control® Code-Stat™, and various other programs. Data Storm can also import and export data to and from existing Survivalink RescueLink® files, which enables forward and backward compatibility. In addition, Data Storm allows users to create their own special queries and reports using standard off-the-shelf reporting software.

Y2K COMPLIANCE
Like all Cardiac Science products, Data Storm is engineered and tested to be year 2000 compliant. Each product is carefully designed for optimum performance after 1999. Cardiac Science certifies the following for all its products:

· Reliable operation in the year 2000 and beyond.
· Correct recognition of the year 2000 as a leap year.

Data Storm is the solution to measuring the value of your AED program. This comprehensive, user-friendly data-collection and administrative tool gives emergency personnel an effective and efficient way to track pre-hospital medical emergencies. And Data Storm's benchmarking capabilities can justify future program needs and expenditures.