Frequently Asked Questions

The application has three primary components – the mobile app, a middle tier web service, and a dispatch system interface.

The mobile app is provided and maintained by the PulsePoint Foundation. Apps are currently available for the iPhone and iOS device platform and Android devices. One version of the software (on each platform) supports all agencies using the app (there is not a separate app for each agency). A configuration screen within the app allows users to select their desired agency or agencies. Member agencies can also provide a connection to local radio traffic to enable a streaming radio feed within the app.

The middle tier is a (Amazon EC2) cloud-based web service that manages communications between the personal mobile devices and the emergency communication centers of member agencies. The service provides encrypted communication and secure identification (HTTPS with SSL/TLS protocol) to connected agencies within a highly reliable environment. This service is also provided and maintained by the PulsePoint Foundation.

Emergency communication centers communicate with the middle tier service through an application programming interface (API). An API is simply a set of rules and specifications that software programs can follow to communicate with each other. The PulsePoint API serves as an interface between Computer-aided Dispatch (CAD) systems and PulsePoint services.

The first step is to build consensus for the app in your community. Determine who should be involved in such a decision and assemble them to discuss the matter and ask questions. Typical attendance might include representatives from Fire, EMS, Communications, Information Technology, Public Information/Outreach, Leadership/Elected Officials, Labor, and affiliated non-governmental organizations such as the local heart association chapter, hospital board/foundation, etc., in addition to interested members of the community. You should also contact your Computer-aided Dispatch vendor at this point to begin discussing the interface requirements and any associated costs. If the vendor has already installed the interface in other accounts this should be a straightforward request. If they haven’t, include us in the discussion and we’ll provide them the support they need to get up and running on our service.

The application also requires data on all publicly accessible AEDs in your jurisdiction. If this information is dated or incomplete, now is the time to consider fully re-validating these records. The PulsePoint app also requires the Latitude and Longitude of each AED – a level of detail your organization may not have collected in the past. Agencies using the Atrus National AED Registry automatically share AED location information with PulsePoint through a real-time interface without the need for any additional work.

Once your organization has made the decision to move forward, contact the PulsePoint Foundation for complete assistance along the path to a successful implementation.

The foundation will begin charging a tiered annual fee for new agencies on October 1, 2013 and for all agencies beginning in 2015. These fees will help ensure the long-term sustainability of the app and will be used to directly benefit our users in several ways including consistent performance, reliable and timely technical support, and a steadily improving product.

CAD Interface
Since the app requires an interface to the local public safety communications center, there are also typically charges from Computer-aided Dispatch (CAD) system vendors to make this connection. Although these costs are beyond the control of PulsePoint, the foundation works directly with the CAD vendors to moderate these fees with reuse efficiencies and grant opportunities.

Community Outreach
For the app to be successful in any agency it must be embraced by the community. Effective implementation requires a comprehensive community outreach strategy be to planned and executed. The foundation provides resources for the effort including a customized Public Service Announcement and sample collateral advertising material. However, a budget should be considered for an effective focused campaign of this nature. Due to the life-saving nature of the application, donated ad placement and other in-kind services are also possible.

CPR/AED Training
Due primarily to an increase in awareness, a wide-scale campaign around the app will likely create a spike in demand for local CPR and AED training. Additional resources needed to support this surge should also be anticipated.

The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) protects the privacy of individually identifiable health information. On a ‘CPR Needed’ notification, the app reports only an address (in a public place) and a business name, if available. Individually identifiable health information, such as name, birth date, or Social Security Number are not reported or known to the PulsePoint application. In addition, PulsePoint has retained Page, Wolfberg & Wirth, LLC to assist agencies understand legal issues related to the implementation of PulsePoint. PWW is well respected EMS law firm specializing in dispatch liability and HIPAA issues.

The PulsePoint app is a Location-Based Service (LBS) with the ability to make use of the geographical position of your mobile device. The LBS capabilities of the app allow you to see your current location relative to the incidents occurring around you. This is an optional feature that is not enabled by default – you must specially opt-in to utilize this functionality. In addition, if you opt-in to the CPR/AED notification, the PulsePoint server will store your current location for immediate reference during an emergency where you may be nearby. In this case, only the current location of your device is stored (no movement history is maintained) and your identity is never known to the PulsePoint application.

CPR today is very easy to perform and can be learned quickly in informal settings such as community street fairs, group training sessions, take-home DVD-based courses, or even by watching brief online videos. These types of training environments do not provide certificates of other forms of skill documentation. Automated External Defibrillators (AEDs) actually require no training to use. Therefore, there is no ability or even reason to verify that someone volunteering to help others with CPR or an AED has been formally trained. Learn how you can help save a life in this one-minute American Heart Association video showing Hands-Only CPR in action.

Only about one quarter of Sudden Cardiac Arrest victims receive bystander CPR, and public access Automated External Defibrillators (AEDs) are used less than 3% of the time when needed and available. The current situation is far too few bystander rescuers – not too many. The goal of the app is to engage additional bystanders in these lifesaving acts. If this was to truly materialize in the future it would be a major success and the footprint of the notification could be reduced.

For the app to be activated someone must first call the local emergency number (such as 911) to begin a normal public safety response. This means that the victim is likely not alone when the CPR/AED notifications are made. In addition, the app is only activated for incidents occurring in public places (not at someone’s home for example) furthering the likelihood that others will be present. Also, since the app is only activated on devices in the immediate vicinity of the victim, a “Bad Samaritan” has little opportunity to be in the right place at the right time.

The app aims to notify those essentially within walking distance of the event location. However, this distance is configurable on an agency by agency basis. Higher population densities usually warrant a smaller notification radius. Likewise, a rural area with longer local government response times may choose to notify over a broader area.

The purpose of the Good Samaritan Law is to protect individuals that assist a victim during a medical emergency. Most Good Samaritan laws are created specifically for the general public. The law assumes that there is no medically trained person available to assist the victim. Since the Good Samaritan typically does not have medical training, the law protects him or her from being liable from injury or death caused to the victim during a medical emergency. A general layperson is protected under the Good Samaritan laws as long as he or she has good intentions to aid the victim to the best of his or her ability during a medical emergency. Since each state law has specific guidelines, and this text does not provide a worldwide view of this matter, you should familiarize yourself with the laws or acts applicable to you. A typical example of the wording appears below.

“…a person, who, in good faith, lends emergency care or assistance without compensation at the place of an emergency or accident, and who was acting as a reasonable and prudent person would have acted under the circumstances present at the scene at the time the services were rendered, shall not be liable for any civil damages for acts or omissions performed in good faith.”

Yes. With dispatchers making rapid over-the-telephone assessments of patients based on the observations of untrained callers, an incorrect determination can be made. For example, such a situation could occur with someone who has just had a grand mal seizure, passed out from too much alcohol, or has a very high blood sugar. However, if you tried to do CPR on such an individual he or she would probably moan and possibly even try to push you away. Also, an AED would not deliver a shock to a person in any condition where an effective heartbeat was present.

The application first checks with the originating agency, as this is the most accurate source of local information of this nature. It does this by checking the value of the “Public” field sent in the interface (API) record for the incident. An agency can set this value to True if it is able to determine this through the computer-aided dispatch (CAD) system, a GIS layer, local database, etc. For example, if the CAD system of the local agency knows that the incident address is at a local park, it can inform PulsePoint, through the interface, to consider the location as public. Likewise, if CAD can determine that the address is an apartment building, it can set the value of “Public” in the interface to False. If the value of “Public” is left blank, PulsePoint will query public data sources such as the FedEx shipping database to determine if the address should be considered residential or business (public).

Each agency supplies their own audio feed for use in the app. This requires about $700 in hardware and a free account on RadioReference.com. See complete setup instructions on our Streaming Radio Channel page.

The Photos tab allows PulsePoint agencies to easily display incident, event, station, apparatus, and other photo albums from within the app. See complete setup instructions on our In-App Agency Photos page.

The PulsePoint Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization primarily funded through donations from private individuals and charitable foundations. Contributors include El Camino Hospital, the Allstate Foundation, the Dornsife Family Foundation, and Workday, Inc.