Ambulance Corps chief defends EMS response

By Stephanie Prokop, Staff Writer
   MANSFIELD — Mansfield Township Ambulance Corps Chief Richard Archer told the Township Committee Oct. 24 that despite a recent study criticizing emergency response in the state, Mansfield is providing adequate care.
   A study conducted by Tridata, a national consulting firm based in Virginia, was released by the state Department of Health and Senior Services last month, and mandated by the state Legislature. The report found the system in the state, in general, to be “near crisis,” said Mr. Archer.
   Among the recommendations made by Tridata was restructuring the stateEMS system into geographic regions, rather than relying on centralmanagement. The report also recommends enacting legislation to”overhaul the entire EMS system.”
   In Mr. Acher’s report to the committee, he described the local squad’s performance, stating that the township response time, based on 1,100 calls, is approximately 6.5 minutes. The Tridata report does not give a general state average response time, but Mr. Archer said the goal for response is 8 minutes, 59 seconds, 90 percent of the time, he said.
   That time objective is from the “gold standard of excellence,” outlined by the National Commission of Accreditation of Ambulance Service, he said.
   The Mansfield Ambulance Corps also reports monthly to the township and quarterly to the state Department of Health.
   ”If we have to go to Four Seasons (development), that time may take a little longer, based on the geographic region of the place,” said Mr. Archer, “but I still think that we’re doing adequate service.” Mr. Archer also said that the largest volume occurs at the west end of the township, with most calls occurring west of Route 206.
   There are currently 19 emergency medical technicians employed by Mansfield, with 10 who work full time, and nine who work part time.
   Mr. Archer reported that three of those nine EMTs are certified.
   Retaining EMTs is difficult, stated Mr. Archer, because Mansfield does not provide retirement benefits to those who work full time on the squad.
   Although the township is able to keep the positions filled, “We all know it’s better from a business perspective to have people stick around,” he added.
   As of Oct. 1 of this year, Mansfield paramedics have responded to 1,023 calls, for which 103 were automobile related; 191 injury-related calls, and 669 medical emergency-related calls.
   This meant that on average, there were approximately four calls per working day.
   Paramedics in Mansfield also participate in outside training with other communities, to hone their skills and keep them sharp.
   Every patient’s chart is also written out electronically, which is a new practice for the squad, he reported.
   In addition, all EMTs go to an incident command system, which is based on training levels.
   According to Deputy Chief Ryan Lewis, the system is based on a type of training for township officials. EMTs make their way from the 100-level to the 400-level, which ranges from an awareness level to an operational level.
   ”You have to have so much training, and we here have an expectation to exceed that,” he added.
   Mr. Archer said that despite having a high turnover rate, the township offers support.
   The committee members thanked Mr. Archer, and said that they were satisfied with the report.
   ”It looks as though we are above average,” said Deputy Mayor LaVerne Cholewa.