a Lx The Dallas Post Dallas, PA Wednesday, August 29, 1990 5 Pullout (continued from page 1) between ambulance and para- medic crews; the cancellation pol- icy for paramedics; and extra costs to patients. “It is not that we are against simultaneous dispatching,” said Dodson, “it is just certain points that need to be looked at.” “The Kunkle crews will not take part in simultaneous dispatching as it is now,” said Dodson. Contacted Tuesday, Paul Sabol, president of the communication center's executive board and King- ston Township Police Chief, said threats like this will not affect the board's recent decision to go ahead with simultaneous dispatching. “If they said that then I guess they are going to pull out,” said Sabol. “They have threatened us with other things before, but the decision has been made.” Sabol said that it is not all the ambulance crews in the area fight- ing this. “A lot of people haven't voiced their opinion but they are happy with our decision.” AMBULANCE CREWS FEEL LEFT OUT Dodson feels that the board members stepped on a few toes when making the decision. “I am the person to see when it comes to fire and ambulance and I wasn't included in the decision,” said Dodson. “The police should stick to police work and leave the deci- sions for ambulance up to the medical people.” He added that he felt the communication center was beginning to tell the ambulance crews what to do. bl i it Ek Ll Rl SL EEE RL lb RE Eh 0 IB hh Me LB Es ms a ly "We are all here to serve and that is what we do. We just need to work together a little more.” Nancy Ruggere, Dallas Ambulance Chief “We are paying them $1,500 a year to dispatch us and now they are telling us what to do,” said Dodson. Sabol said that if the crews weren't happy then they could pull out. “If they are not happy with the service then they can go. Kunkle is one maybe Dallas or Lehman will pull out also,” he said. Kunkle may have alternatives that other companies don't. Dod- son said that there are a number of options his company could look into if it pulled out of the center. These include using the company’s fire phones or joining up with the Wyoming County Communications Center. “We deal with Wyoming County and their paramedics,” said Dod- son. “We have no problem with them and when we first started talking to them they told us that the paramedics are there to work with us.” : Dallas Ambulance Chief Nancy Ruggere says her company is against the policy but is not look- ing at leaving the center. “We are looking at ways of handling the situation,” she said. “What we want is for everyone to sit down and work this out.” Spill (continued from page 1) ® around the tank and in the lake. "The tank was removed and cut up ® by borough employees. Boice said that there is still some oil at the inlet but it is being con- tained and more absorbent pads are being used to mop up what is left. He said that the borough is continuing to test the ground around the tank and is removing any of the contaminated soil. He also said that it is nearly impossible to tell how much oil had leaked from the tank. “It is hard to tell,” said Boice. “In a case like this it takes only a little oil to make a big mess.” Officials of DER said that bor- ough did nothing wrong in burying the tank. Up until last year aban- doning the tanks was acceptable. But new laws have said that the tanks are not allowed to be put in the ground. Carman said that there are probably still thousands of tanks buried throughout the state and DER has set up a process to have these tanks registered. Cleanup at Harveys Lake will continue until all is well, accord- ing to Boice. “We have spent more than $1,000 in absorbent pads alone and we will continue until this is straightened out,” he said. Letter a Defends Hegins pigeon shoot | Editor: Picture this headline, “ACTIV- IST ELEMENTS ENJOIN LAW ABIDING CITIZENS FROM SOCIAL ACTIVITY". How would you like to see a band of militant cyclists, something on the order of the Hell's Angels, (peacefully) protest the selling of hamburger (ground up animal) by driving their motor- & - cycles through the Back Mountain Memorial Library Auction next July. Sound far fetched. Not so unlike the attempts by Animal Rights Mobilization (ARM) to have the Commonwealth issue an injunc- tion to prevent the Hegins, Pa. traditional Labor Day pigeon shoot. Here's a group, by their own ad- mission and conduct prone to instigate violent behavior, assem- ‘bling in someone else’s (not their own) backyard to prevent a lawful community activity. Let's not lose sight of the fact that up until a few years ago before Trans-Species Unlimited and simi- lar animal rights groups began to swoop into Hegins there were over 50 years of peace and tranquility at this Labor Day event. If any injunction is to be issued by the Commonwealth it should be against those outsiders whose only goal is to wreak havoc in our communities. John P. Bergevin Dallas Back To School Sale Teens to Teachers efpl DISPATCHER TRAINING IS BIGGEST ISSUE The biggest issue for the ambu- lance people is the training of dis- patchers whowillbe deciding when to send a paramedic along with an ambulance crew. “If a dispatcher can't pick out which calls need a paramedic then there will be a problem,” said Dodson. “The ambulance crews have better qualifications and have been doing this until now.” Ruggere agreed with Dodson. “Our EMT's spend more than 100 hours being certified. It is our contention that the dispatchers need more than a couple of days of training to know what to do.” When the policy was approved last month, the communication center's executive board noted that the dispatchers will be trained in the policy of simultaneous .dis- patching. But the training they receive will not give them state certification, something the am- bulance crews feel is needed. “We are not criticizing any one dispatcher,” said Kunkle ambu- lance captainJulie Roan. “We don't think they have the training to decipher the calls. You must be very selective on which calls to send a paramedic to.” As the policy stands now, dis- patchers will be trained and then will follow a checklist to determine if a paramedic should be dis- patched. The ambulance crews feel that without proper training the checklist will not be of sufficient help to the dispatcher. Dodson said that he approached the center's executive committee about paying for a training class for the dispatchers. He said that the board refused to pay the $50 per person charge for the class. “If we are going to do this why are we only doing it half-way?” asked Ruggere. “Why should the decision on who to send be made by someone who is not trained.?” Currently, the decision on whether a paramedic is needed is made by the ambulance crews. The ambulance people either call for a paramedic while enroute to a call or once at the scene. The ambulance crews are also concerned about the cancellation policy for paramedics. Cancella- tion is now made by a physician at a hospital. However, ambulance people feel this may hinder the effectiveness of everyone in the area once simultaneous dispatch- ing begins. “If the paramedics are going to a scene where they are not needed we should be able to cancel imme- diately,” said Roan. “But the way it is now the paramedics may be enroute to a case where they're not needed and not on a call where they are needed.” Dodson related a case in which his ambulance responded to an accident call and found the per- sons involved uninjured and walk- ing around outside of the vehicle. He said the paramedic crew that was enroute would not accept cancellation, even when told that the people had signed the neces- sary release forms. A second call then came in, and paramedics had to be dispatched from Kingston to handle it, be- cause the Back Mountain crew was tied up uselessly. BETTER WORKING RELATIONS SOUGHT Another big concern is the work- ing relationship between the para- medics and the ambulance people. “The ambulance crews in the ‘Back mountain are probably 100 percent better than many areas and we deserve a little credit for knowing what we can do,” said Dodson. Ruggere agreed with Dodson's assessment. She said that there is sometimes tension between some ambulance crews and paramedics because ambulance crews are not treated respectfully. “The attitude of many paramed- ics has been horrible,” said Rug- gere. “I've seen a change in atti- tude in the way they are treating our people.” She said that often there are times when an ambu- lance crew is at a scene and has taken all the vital statistics and other information and when the paramedic crews arrive they do the same things instead of consulting with the ambulance crews. “Why don't they just talk to us?” she said. Ruggere also told of a situation where a paramedic, after giving a patient a shot, stuck the syringe needle into the seat of the ambu- lance. When the ambulance crews remarked about it the paramedic supposedly said, “Relax, you're getting anew ambulance anyway.” Ruggere said that the working relationship with the paramedics is not always difficult, but said that there are some instances when the paramedics take over and make all the decisions, even for the pa- tient. “We have had paramedics tell a patient which hospital they are going to even after a patient said they wanted to go elsewhere,” said Ruggere. Nesbitt Hospital Administrator Ron Stern said that the paramed- ics have a certain protocol, through the Emergency Management Serv- ice, they must follow when trans- porting a patierit. Stern said that a case like the one mentioned might fall in that protocol. Despite their concerns, both Dodson and Ruggere praised the work of both the ambulance crews and the paramedics, saying that patients in the Back Mountain are getting the best care possible. “We have the paramedics with us for 60 percent of our calls,” said Ruggere. “We are all here to serve the patients and that is what we do. We just need to work together a little more” she added. NESBITT OFFERS TO INTERCEDE Stern said that he talked with Dodson but did not receive any other calls about problems. He did (— LONG-DISTANCE | Why Settle For Just 10% Why Dial Extra multaneous dispatch. Pittston. paramedic include: eAny unconscious person. of the injuries is unknown. advanced monitoring. Dispatchers would follow checklist for paramedics A number of people involved with the simultaneous dispatch controversy have stated that the policy is not an absolutely si- Instead, the dispatcher at the communications center will follow a checklist to see if a paramedic is needed for a call. Paul Sabol, president of the center's executive committee and Kingston Township Police Chief, said that the checklist will be « similar to the one used by Emergency Medical Services in According to that checklist, the calls which would warrant a eCalls where a respiratory deficiency may be present. This includes, but is not limited to; heart attacks, burns, facial or head trauma, drug overdose, seizures, and chest pains. eCalls where a circulatory deficiency may be present. This in- cludes, but is not limited to; severe bleeding, heat stroke, severe trauma, gunshot or stab wounds, suicide, severe vomit- ing, and chest/abdomen wounds. Calls which involve severe multi-system injuries. Calls which involve injuries to more than one patient when the extent of the injuries is unknown. eCalls which involve entrapment or rescue when the extent eIn general, any calls which may require fluid replacement, drug therapy, electrical therapy, advanced airway initiation or Despite this checklist, area ambulance associations have ex- pressed concern over the training that dispatchers will receive before the simultaneous dispatch policy is put into effect. Some ambulance crew members feel that all dispatchers should receive training from state officials who are certified to teach a class. Despite these concerns the communications center's executive board has set up a training course not taught | by state officials. Sabol, said that the dispatcher’s training will be adequate for the simultaneous dispatch policy. say that the hospital wants to continue to provide proper medi- cal care in the Back Mountain. “And because of this I am extend- ing an invitation to any of the ambulance units to sit down with me and review the concerns and resolve any of the differences,” said Stern. “I live in the Back Mountain and I want the best service back there just like everyone else.” Stern said that he has received compliments on the way paramed- ics and ambulance personnel work together. “We had a member on our board tell us that a guest in his home had some chest pains and an ambulance and paramedic were called to his home in the Back Mountain,” said Stern. “The board member said he got to witness first hand the workings of the two crews and said he was pleased at the way things went and the success of the great team effort.” On the issue of cost of the para- medics, Stern stressed that para- medic crews only charge for the supplies used, not for the service. He said that the public needs to be aware of this issue. Dodson has said that his association wants assurances that the crews will not charge for the services. Ri “The local ambulance crews are giving the best care they can, but with the hospitals it comes down to money,” said Dodson. COMMUNITY STILL COMES FIRST As the ambulance crews con- tinue in their crusade to have the simultaneous dispatch policy changed, they want to reassure the communities in the area that the ambulance service will still be ] the best possible. “We have alot of dedicated people He and probably some of the best ambulance crews anywhere,” said Dodson. “We could also have the best emergency teams in the whole valley if there were more commu- nication between everyone associ- ated with the comm center.” Ruggere said that the disputes | over the policy will not effect the ambulance crews’ work with the community. “We have our patients first in our minds and we are not = going to deprive them of anything,” she said. Subscribe now The Dalla Post forme! testimony BY 1 0a raryof the at autFot 0 QUES OM ‘ Fall Fashions Are Here! 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