Agenda - 03-25-2010 - 2 - Laserfiche WebLink

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11 Fire Chief's memo to Town Managers on EMS Report 3/16/10 • Another impact is the increasing percentage of emergency medical calls in the total call volume of the fire departments. Chapel Hill is up nearly 9.5% in four years at 44.5 %of total volume compared to 35% in 2005. Carrboro is at 52%. The result is less availability of fire units for the community and campus when fire protection and hazard abatement are the fire department's primary functions. The increasing demand for medical calls may negatively impact fire response and all of the fire departments' insurance ratings. • On February 22, 2010 Orange County EMS ran out of available ambulances five times during the 24-hour shift. While this is just one example and not a normal day, it is also not that unusual. This type of situation is happening with increasing frequency, thus leaving residents and visitors more vulnerable. • On February 23, 2010 a Town of Carrboro employee came to the Carrboro Fire Department complaining of breathing problems. The firefighters treated the employee with their basic emergency medical technician (EMT) skills just like they would any other citizen in the county. When they called 911 to request a paramedic ambulance,the 911 telecommunicator stated that they already had four calls stacked and they would be the fifth waiting in line. • Potentially lifesaving medications can only be administered by Orange County paramedics who arrive with the EMS unit or Carrboro EMT's. The expectations of citizens in a true life threatening emergency may not be met when fire department first responders are asked by the victim or family members with increasing frequency, "what is taking the ambulance so long?". • Due to simultaneous incidents and multiple agencies reporting to one telecommunicator,the 911 center should utilize the higher level of technology it has for dispatching services. The fire departments have increas ing concerns about the dispatch resources at the 911 center when these have not kept pace with increasing call volume. The fire departments are dispatched much the same as 15 to 20 years ago despite the increased call volume, a new 911 center, a new 800 MHz radio system, and service delivery advances. This results in greater call processing time and overall response time for all first responders. The telecommunicators' stressful job is performed by a dedicated staff who work extremely hard to obtain quality information from frantic citizens during emergencies.. When obtained in a timely manner, this ensures our first responders and the public's safety. • We encourage the County to consider adding more EMS units in the field ASAP. All three municipalities are willing to work with the County to identify places to park EMS units. Additional dispatch personnel are also needed to separate the 12 fire,EMS, and rescue agencies into more manageable groups—these are currently handled by one telecommunicator. While we understand the budgetary constraints faced by all local governments, we believe this to be an urgent public safety resource need. -Attached to this memo is a chart that demonstrates levels of EMS resources and populations covered in surrounding areas. 2