Relationship between public awareness and expectations of pre-hospital Emergency Medical Services in Tabriz, Iran, in 2020

Background: Awareness of Emergency Medical Services (EMS) procedures is important for the general public to receive emergency services in a timely manner. Understanding public expectations is essential for providing therapeutic interventions and managing expectations.Objectives: This study aimed to determine the relationship between public awareness and expectations regarding pre-hospital EMS in Tabriz, Iran, in 2020.Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted at the School of Nursing and Midwifery, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran, in 2020. In this study, 1100 EMS callers were randomly selected. Data were collected through telephone interviews using a questionnaire assessing public awareness and expectations of pre-hospital emergency care services and analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics using SPSS v.16 software.Results: The average interviewers’ awareness score was 65.72±14.98. The highest awareness was related to the area of medical emergencies (75.56±6.87) and the lowest awareness was related to contacting emergency service (58.59±21.65). The total expectation was high (79.99±8.90). Moreover, the expectations regarding emergency facilities and response time was 80.16±8.97 and the expectations from emergency staff was 79.82±9.95. Men's awareness and women's expectations of emergency services were high. In this study, there was a significant relationship between awareness and expectation (P=0.001 & r=0.15). Moreover, there was a significant relationship between the level of awareness and expectations regarding demographic variables, including gender, age, marital status, education and income levels (P<0.05).Conclusion: Findings show that public awareness and expectations regarding EMS services were medium and high, respectively. There was a significant relationship between public awareness and expectations from pre-hospital EMS services. Therefore, it is better to make plans to inform the general public about EMS through social media and mass media. Additionally, appropriate, timely education at different ages can foster a dynamic and constructive interaction between awareness and expectations in the community regarding pre-hospital emergency.