Agenda - 08-30-2012 - 2 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Comprehensive Assessment of Emergency Medical Services 8 DRAFT REPORT and 911/Communications Center Operations Study 2.2 EXISTING CONDITIONS Organizationally, Emergency Medical Services (EMS) in Orange County is provided as a major division within the Orange County Emergency Services Department. Subsequently, the EMS "system" designation as registered with the North Carolina Office of Emergency Medical Services (OEMS) is "Orange County". The requirements that must be met to become certified as an "EMS System" in North Carolina are identified in Administrative Code Section 10 NCAC 13P .0201; which is included in the Appendix section of this report. The system response area consists of the 398 square miles (US Census Bureau) that lie within and comprise the boundaries of Orange County. According to the North Carolina Office of Management and Budget, the estimated July 2011 County population was 135,776 residents. EMS services, per statute, are available 24 hours per day, 365 days per year. The EMS Unit is managed on a day-to-day basis by an Operations Manager, with the rank of Captain, who currently reports directly to the Emergency Services Department Director. Additional full-time administrative personnel include a Training Officer, and a Staff Operations Officer. Technical support within the department is provided as needed by personnel currently assigned to the Planning& Logistics Unit. Operations personnel include four (4) Shift Supervisors, 36 certified Paramedics and 23 certified Emergency Medical Technicians (EMT's); including the Division Manager, the Operations Officer, and the Training Officer, a total of 66 full-time employees at the present time. In addition, EMS also has access to a small contingent of certified part-time employees that are able to fill in during staff vacations, absences, or when position vacancies occur. Orange County EMS is certified as a "Paramedic" level agency by the State, which designates them as an advanced life support (ALS) provider. This system certification level requires that any time an ambulance responds to a medical emergency, it must have at least one (1) certified Paramedic level EMT on board. The County is a single EMS district which comprises the referenced 398 square miles of the County. The County's current EMS Plan on file with the State OEMS, states that a minimum of five (5) EMT- Paramedic ambulances, will be staffed and available within the County 24 hours per day. Currently, the highest concentration of population within the County, and subsequently the highest percentage of EMS calls occur within and proximate to the adjacent, south county municipalities of Carrboro and Chapel Hill. Personnel &Vehicle Deployment During the period of this study, EMS employees worked either 24-hour or 12-hour shifts. The 24-hour schedule includes one (1) 24-hour shift followed by 72 hours off plus mandatory call-back duty 1-2 times per month. The 12-hour schedule utilizes an alternating two and three day sequence of days worked and days off; i.e. 2-days work, 2-days off, 3-days work, 3-days off, 2 days work, etc. And, as stated, each on-duty ambulance must be staffed with no less than two (2) certified EMT's-at least one of which must be certified at the Paramedic level. NOTE: The EMS Division, effective July 27th, is transitioning to all 12-hour shifts. Solutions for Local Government,Inc. 6