History: Available ambulance and off-the-shelf First Aid and Oxygen Resuscitation kits were found to be unsuitable for firefighter requirements, leading to the MFB EMS Department developing their own purpose designed and built kits. These kits have since been proven to be very successful in their ease of use, robustness and storage in firefighting appliances. The cornerstone of the EMR First Responder program is the rapid application of defibrillation to the patient. The MFB was the first Australian Fire Service to utilise Automatic External Defibrillators (AED's) which made the key clinical decisions automatically and could be used effectively with minimal training. The first units chosen, Laerdal HeartStart FR, were lightweight, analysed heart rhythms, decided whether a shock was needed and gave simple voice prompts and instructions. The MFB continues to remain at the forefront of this technology using a new and ground breaking defibrillator data download and transfer system to store, record and transfer patient ECG and treatment information within minutes of receiving a request from a receiving hospital. All MFB primary appliances carry AED units, Oxygen Resuscitator, First Aid kits and other life support equipment necessary for the provision of the EMR role. Pilot Program in early January 1998 after much negotiation from all stakeholders involved in the development and implementation of the EMR program, the then Victorian State Government through the Minister for Health, determined that a conjoint six month pilot be initiated. The primary objective of the pilot was to determine whether simultaneous dispatch of both MFB and MAS resources would lead to more rapid response times and therefore more rapid application of defibrillation for life threatening medical emergencies involving cardiac arrest