Orange County NC Website
th <br />Frank Clifton said that on September 11 the Council of State will meet about the <br />County’s request for a long-term lease on property for a future jail site. He said that additional <br />jail space is needed for female inmates and alternative programs. <br />Chair Pelissier said that she would hope that the Sheriff and everyone in the criminal <br />justice systems will be involved in the creation of a new jail and the County needs to look at <br />this and alternative programs simultaneously. <br />2. Draft Comprehensive Assessment of Emergency Medical Services and 911/ <br />Communications Center Operations Study <br />Michael Talbert said that the County Commissioners will be receiving a final draft <br />Comprehensive Assessment of Emergency Medical Services and 911/ Communications <br />Center Operations Study. The County Commissioners approved this in December of 2011 and <br />it has taken a little over six months to complete. It has been thoroughly vetted through the <br />Emergency Services Work Group. Steve Allan, from Solutions for Government, was present to <br />give an overview of the report. <br />Steve Allan made a PowerPoint presentation. The call volume in 2011 was 10,719, <br />which was an increase from 10,420 in 2010. The primetime of the day for calls is from 9:00 <br />a.m. to 9:00 p.m. <br />He explained the turn-out time and the travel time, which total the response time. <br />Regarding the Emergency vs. Non-Emergency Response Times, he explained that Emergency <br />is a response with lights and sirens and Non-Emergency has no lights or sirens. The Average <br />Event Duration Time is the time it takes for the vehicle to respond to an emergency, transport <br />the patient, and be ready to respond again. The increase in this is a combination of the travel <br />distance and the backup in the emergency vehicles. <br />The issues of concern are: Availability of Ambulances, Response Times, and EMS <br />Facilities. <br />Availability of Ambulances <br /> <br />During 2011 ambulances were directed to “MOVE” 2,360 times from their identified <br />staging area or location to another point in the County because: <br />a. The number of ambulances immediately available was down to one (1) and the <br />subject ambulance was directed to move to a location (typically) near the center of <br />the County in anticipation of being able to respond in any direction the call may <br />direct. <br /> <br />or <br /> <br />b. In tracking the status of multiple ambulances, the Communications Center and/or <br />EMS Supervisor(s) noted significant area gaps in coverage and redirected <br />movement of ambulance(s) accordingly. <br /> <br />Steve Allan said that moving ambulances this many times is significant. <br /> <br />Response Time <br /> <br />“The time from the initial alert or announcement by the Communications Center of the <br />reported emergency, to the time that the service vehicle and appropriate personnel <br />arrive on the scene.” <br /> <br />