Chances are sometime during the day you're going to hear and see an ambulance responding to a call. They average about 1,000 calls a month, so the odds are very good.
Cole County took over the Emergency Medical Services from Capital Region Medical Center in July 2009, following a successful half-cent sales tax proposal approved by the voters.
Since then, we have replaced the entire ambulance fleet and upgraded our emergency life-saving systems. We currently have a fleet of 12 ambulances and three quick-response SUVs; with a staff of 51 full-time and 54 part-time employees. I want to applaud the loyalty of our staff because of our 105-member roster, 24 came over from Capital Region and are still saving lives in Cole County. We have a new director of EMS, Jerry Johnston, who came to use from Alemeda County EMS; and Johnston is completely reorganizing our service.
We respond from five locations throughout the county that include Southridge, Brazito, Apache Flats, County Park and the jail. We hope to eventually add an ambulance to eastern Cole County. I need to also thank our first responders, both in the city and the county, because they are our partners in saving lives.
When you see one of our ambulances, they are much more than just a box with a cot. We carry state-of-the-art lifesaving equipment including Lifepak 15 Cardiac monitors, LUCAS compression devices (for cardiac arrests), new ventilators for critical care transports, medications for drug overdoses and new Ferno Power Cots. Cole County EMS is an ALS (Advanced Life Support) service, which means there is at least one paramedic on each ambulance.
Cole County Emergency Medical Services averages 900-1,000 calls a month for an annual volume of 10,000-12,000 per year. They operate 365 days a year, 24 hours a week, in cold, snow and heat.
When you see one of our white and blue ambulances running with lights and sirens on, please pull over and know they are responding to a medical call to save a life. These paramedics and EMTs are my heroes!
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Sam Bushman is the presiding commissioner on the Cole County Commission. He shares his perspective each month on county issues. He can be reached at [email protected].