When is there going to be paid EMS in ST Mary's County

MysteryEMT · #1 05-28-2007, 07:55 AM

I have heared on the rumor mill that St Mary's may be going paid soon does anybody know anything on this?

RUNNINTHELINE · #2 05-28-2007, 03:57 PM

There are always rumors going around about how there is going to be paid EMS in the county. There definitely should be paid EMS in St. Mary's county. The citizens of the county sometimes have to wait 20-30 minutes for an ambulance to even respond. Alot of times the ambulance is coming from Charles County on the Northside or Lexington park anywhere else. I think it is time for the EMS squads of the county to take a good hard look at the scratch to getting out ratio. Maybe paying EMS during the daytime would be a good start for now. I know that going 5-6 companies deep on a trouble breathing call or a chest pains call is a little extreme.

WagonPipe · #3 05-30-2007, 07:00 AM

There is a definite need for paid EMS during the day. Getting this backwards county to do anything is another subject. The ALS went to the County a year ago and told them they needed help. What did they do? They instructed the Director of Public Safety to form a Volunteer Task Force to see how to recruit more volunteers! What a solution! The ALS is still having staffing issues with many days with no ALS coverage in the county. Until one of those county officials vapor locks at the governmental center and ALS doesn't show up and they have to wait for a transport unit coming from 5th or 6th due the issue might get addressed.

WagonPipe · #4 05-30-2007, 09:37 PM

Yes St. Mary's needs some paid help in some areas. The ALS went to the county last year for help, thier solution was that they instructed the Director of Public Safety to head up a Volunteer Task Force. Problem still exists and the volunteers are not beating down the doors to become ALS members. Maybe one day one someone vapor locks in the governmental center and the ALS unit is out of service along with the closest BLS is coming from the 6th due someone will believe there is a problem.

smcitizen · #5 05-31-2007, 11:55 AM

The people in charge (chiefs, presidents, and commissioners, so called public safety officials) do not care about response time. They don’t care if a person having a heart attack waits 20 minutes for an ambulance or up to 30 minutes for ALS intervention. How many times have you heard "No medic unit available" All they care about is taxing the public to pay for a service that is sub par (Lexington Park is the exception, what ever they are doing needs to be repeated elsewhere) and buying more useless equipment. (5 ambulances when only one can get out). There is absolutely NO oversight on what is bought in this county, everyone buys what they want regardless if it’s needed or not.

Totally unbelievable!!!!

MysteryEMT · #6 05-31-2007, 01:06 PM

I agree with what alot of you are saying. Why should someone have to wait 20-30 minutes for emergency care. I think the good people of St Mary's county needed to start putting the pressure on the politicians, chiefs, and who ever else to find a soulution to the problem. If it means that paid people have to come in to fix the problem so be it. But I know if it was my father, mother, or any other family member having a medical emergency I would want help there as fast as possiable.

smcitizen · #7 05-31-2007, 03:11 PM

And the commisioners should know, THEY are liable if someone dies because an ambulance or ALS is not avalable or has a delayed response becuase no one wants to run the BS calls, or there is no one around to fill the crews. They give the rescue squads TAXPAYER MONIES, and someone needs to hold them accountable

Coyote · #8 05-31-2007, 05:33 PM

IMHO, St. Mary's Co. will get a paid EMS Service in your County, when a citizen dies because of an unsat response time, and that citizen is a family member, or close friend of someone in the County that has some influence i.e. someone with power and money.

Because as they always say "BS walks, and MONEY & POWER talks".

ate-up · #9 05-31-2007, 09:23 PM

What is the dispatch criteria for running an engine when the ambo fails--And isn't there a former vol fire chief that is a county commisioner?

WagonPipe · #10 05-31-2007, 09:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ate-up

What is the dispatch criteria for running an engine when the ambo fails--And isn't there a former vol fire chief that is a county commisioner?

If an Ambulance is not on the road within 10 minutes the first due fire company is sent.

MysteryEMT · #11 06-01-2007, 08:58 AM

Sending an engine company if the ambulance fails is all well and good to get patient care going but you still run into the problem of having to get an ambulance there to transport the patient to the hospital. Especially if it's a load and go situation which can occur on any medical call. I think that St. Mary's needs to follow Charles county's lead and just have paid EMS.

smcitizen · #12 06-01-2007, 12:02 PM

Maybe we should start putting stretchers on engines

MysteryEMT · #13 06-01-2007, 01:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by smcitizen

Maybe we should start putting stretchers on engines

Now that would be a funny site right there considering that most firefighters don't like to run EMS

seagrverider · #14 06-02-2007, 03:58 PM

Sadly, but the best solution maybe to begin combining the EMS and Fire Depts. For ex. look at Calvert, besides P.F. every station has EMS and Fire together and no1 complains about it but more importantly, they get out on almost every call most of the time getting 1 or more EMS units on the road at once.

And putting paid men in EMS stations would ruin the volunteer fire stations cuz i garuntee it would take a year 4 the county to begin staffing firehouses with paid men/women also

red. · #15 06-03-2007, 10:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by smcitizen

Maybe we should start putting stretchers on engines

I can see it now, Engine 23 rolling up at St. Mary's Hospital doing a transport. There WOULD BE no more volunteer fire stations left in the county if they were forced to run EMS.

Ha ha, "Engine 72 requesting a MEDPATCH to St. Mary's Hospital. St. Mary's we're en route to your location transporting a 86 year old blah blah chief complaint injuries from a fall..."

They'd throw in the towel.

Career EMS would not toil the volunteer system. In Charles, it's career EMS at all the stations and it works in a perfect balance with the BLS crews. You don't find very many volunteer "Paramedic Ambulance blah blahs...." By placing the advanced life support career units in Charles, lives are being saved, BLS volunteer units still see lots of action-- the community is better for it.

Very few volunteers are willing to go above and beyond to get their medic and ALS procedures (with most stations having over a 15 minute transport time to St. Mary's Hospital) are what saves lives, 99% of the time.

Get me together a bunch of volunteer medics and I'll sing a different tune... but when you can't even get a BLS unit on the road, and you are calling the 2nd and 3rd due companies to cover- it's time for the career system to move in.

Career EMS in Charles was the best thing for the system... with stations like Waldorf (whose EMS side runs over 7000 calls a year, unheard of in this county) it's impossible to keep all the units running with BLS crews. EMS 3 only has a total of 4 ambos (one of those is career) and I've heard their dispatch go out 6th, 7th call for EMS 3.

It's coming... when the volunteer medic unit is understaffed or not staffed at all, it's time for paid ALS. It's not a bad thing, it's for the good of everyone. And those who truely care about this, will be the first to submit their applications.

-Red.