title: Justification of pulse oximeter costs for paramedic prehospital providers.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To assess the potential cost savings of decreasing prehospital oxygen utilization by using pulse oximetry to identify those patients who do not require supplemental oxygen.
  
  
  METHODS
  A prospective, controlled trial was performed comparing rates of oxygen utilization by paramedics with and without access to pulse oximetry. Consecutive patient encounters over a ten-week period were randomized by day of presentation. Pulse oximeters were made available on alternate days. On those days, patients whose oxygen saturations were less than 95% were treated with supplemental oxygen.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The use of pulse oximeters incurred a saving of 0.14 "D"-size oxygen cylinders per call. For the authors' service, this translates to a potential saving of $2,324 (C)/vehicle/year.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  For regions with patient demographics similar to the authors', the initial cost of providing paramedics with pulse oximeters may be offset by savings in oxygen consumption. A formula is provided to allow individual ambulance services to calculate the potential savings for their service.
authors.affiliation: Department of Emergency Medicine, Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario, Canada.
authors.forename: D W
authors.initials: DW
authors.lastname: Howes
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Field
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Leary
authors.forename: G R
authors.initials: GR
authors.lastname: Jones
authors.forename: R J
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: Brison
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D004632:Emergency Medical Services / Q000191:economics* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D016014:Linear Models; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010092:Oximetry / Q000191:economics* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011446:Prospective Studies