WAILUKU, Maui -All ambulances in Maui County are now equipped with electrocardiogram devices that will enable paramedics to transmit diagnostic-quality cardiac data via the Internet to the hospital before arrival.

A dozen of the Lifenet STEMI Management Solution units were donated by the Maui Memorial Medical Center Foundation at a cost of nearly $40,000 for a collaborative effort between Maui Memorial Medical Center and American Medical Response, which holds a contract to provide ambulance service on Maui.

The electrocardiogram, or EKG, systems feature a combination of Web, broadband and medical technology that has been proven to reduce the time it takes to treat heart attack patients, according to a news release. The Queen's Medical Center was the first hospital in the state to acquire the technology and has been using it since May.

The technology will benefit patients experiencing STEMI (ST-elevation myocardial infarction), a dangerous form of heart attack that impedes or blocks blood flow to the heart. By receiving a patient's data before arrival at the hospital, Maui Memorial Medical Center's medical team can interpret the condition sooner and more rapidly provide "clot-buster" medication.

The system also will mobilize the hospital's cardiac catheterization lab, where balloon angioplasties are performed to re-establish blood flow to blocked arteries.

"With this new EKG device, we hope to achieve optimal door-to-balloon times, save heart muscle and ultimately more lives," said Maui Memorial Medical Center CEO Wesley Lo.