Rapid Emergency Skills for Prehospital Optimization and Notification in Guatemala
Official title: Rapid Emergency Skills for Prehospital Optimization, Notification, and Delivery (RESPOND-Guatemala): A comprehensive mHealth program for emergency prehospital skills and triage notification
Funded at Brigham and Women's Hospital · NIH-11599795 · Data updated 2026-11-12
A mobile, AI-powered training and triage program helps volunteer emergency responders in Guatemala provide faster, safer trauma care and notify hospitals more quickly.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R21 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Brigham and Women's Hospital NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Boston, United States) |
| Project start | September 15, 2025 |
| Project end | May 31, 2027 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $95,473 |
| NIH project number | 3R21TW012945-02S1 |
| Project ID | NIH-11599795 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal participants are volunteer emergency responders (bomberos) with no formal medical training working in Guatemala's prehospital system.
✕Less likely to help
Individuals without exposure to the prehospital care system or not involved in trauma response are less likely to directly benefit.
What this research studies
This project delivers a gamified, AI-assisted training and triage system to volunteer responders in Guatemala, focusing on basic emergency skills, accurate field triage, and timely hospital notification. It uses a mobile health platform to train bomberos, support decision making, and connect prehospital care with hospital teams. By testing in a high-need, resource-constrained setting, the program aims to improve trauma outcomes and inform scalable approaches for similar contexts in the U.S. and globally. Participation would involve responders and potentially facilities coordinating care and data sharing through the app.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, it could reduce trauma mortality and improve neighborhood emergency response times by equipping volunteers with better skills and faster hospital communication.
How similar studies have gone: Prior efforts in telemedicine and AI-augmented triage have shown promise in improving EMS efficiency, though this exact prehospital, gamified AI-powered program in Guatemala is novel.
Where this research is happening
-
Brigham and Women's Hospital
Boston, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Raykar, Nakul — Brigham and Women's Hospital
- Study coordinator: Raykar, Nakul
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About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.