RANDOLPH FIRE DEPARTMENT

EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERVICES REPORT

As 2007 comes to a close, Randolph Fire has been busier then previous years.  We received 3984 ambulance calls which is a first for this Department.  This number is impressive considering in 1996 we responded to 1935 ambulance calls with a 14 member shift.  Today we operate with a 10 member shift. The calls are far more involved then in the past as now Advanced Life Support is being provided to our patients.  The position of Emergency Medical Services Coordinator becomes more time consuming due to the increased responses and the oversight which those incidents require. In addition to response oversight, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts Office of Emergency Medical Services requires that all changes in regulations, administrative requirements and additional training for our Members be conducted according to State Standards. This continues to become more of a challenge due to current staffing levels and budgetary constraints.

In 2007, we added our "4th Ambulance".  Engine 1 at Central Station, has been licensed by the Office of Emergency Medical Services as a Class 5 Non Transporting Ambulance and is equipped with the same Life Saving Equipment that was included on Engine 4 in North Randolph in 2006.  Although neither Engine 1 nor Engine 4 can transport patients to the hospital they can bring Advanced Life Support to the patient when staffed with Firefighter- Paramedics.  This life saving treatment can occur prior to the arrival of a transporting ambulance.  This valuable "tool" becomes much more important when awaiting a mutual aid ambulance from another community which has become more frequent then in previous years.  We have also upgraded our AMBUPRO-Emergency Incident Management System with new computers which now link Engine 4 at Station 2 in North Randolph with Headquarters. This now allows responding units to document previous patient encounters and history, which improves patient care. The computers also allow us to upload additional information like HAZMAT and other relevant information that might be needed at a scene of an emergency.  It is my hope to have Engine 1 outfitted with the same equipment in the near future.

We have had two additional Members become certified to the Paramedic level.  We currently have two that are enrolled in Paramedic school and due to take the Paramedic certification exam in early 2008.  This will bring the total compliment of Paramedics to 22.  Our three newest members are scheduled to begin their Paramedic training in the fall of 2008. 

On January 4, 2008, we accepted delivery of a new Road Rescue designated as Ambulance 2 which will replace the 2004 ambulance.  This 2008 unit will be identical to the 2006 Road Rescue Ambulance 1.  This unit is due to be placed in service in January of 2008.  We will also begin training our members for the IMMEDIATE trial which is a study for cardiac patients through the Good Samaritan Hospital, our medical control facility.  Our current Quality Assurance / Quality Improvement program continues each quarter for our Advanced Level Providers. Training is conducted under the direction of our Medical Director, Dr. James RiFino.  This training is imperative to maintain high quality pre-hospital care to the people we serve as well as being part of our ambulance licensure requirements.

Looking beyond 2008, the Department must begin to replace our SAED’s (Semi Automatic External Defibrillators) for our front line units.  Our current SAED’s are between seven and eight years old and need to be replaced around the ten year mark due to advancements in technology and safety. We also will look to begin a replacement program for our Life Pak 12 Defibrillators in FY 2010. 

I would like to thank the citizens of the Town for their support of the Fire Department and the Emergency Medical Services aspect of our Department.

Respectfully submitted,

Thomas W. Binnall

Firefighter EMT P

EMS Coordinator

Randolph Fire Department