Getting Volunteers Through the Door

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Like many departments across the country, the Brentwood Legion Ambulance Service, Long Island, NY, has had to focus more attention in recent years on finding ways to recruit and retain enough members for its largely volunteer department.

As a volunteer in the department for nearly 20 years, David Olsen, vice president/chief of operations, has seen changes gradually take place over the course of two decades. "Recruitment has especially changed over the past 10 years," he says. "An adequate number of volunteers used to just come to us. Call volumes were low enough that we could handle them with the people we had. There was really no need to actively go out and recruit. However, economic times have changed (both parents typically work) and call volumes have gone up (progressively each year). About five years ago, we realized we needed to recruit and we put a program in place."

EMS World recently interviewed Olsen about the department's recruitment program:

Why is recruitment such a critical issue for your department?

Long Island has a high cost of living. Typically, both parents work, sometimes at multiple jobs. People just don't have a lot of time to volunteer. We are especially short of volunteers Monday through Friday when most people are at work and not available to respond.

Currently we have an adequate number of volunteers, at about 200, to handle the call volume. But we need to ensure we retain that number. If we stop recruiting and drawing people in, as volunteers leave or realize their lives have changed and they don't have enough time to volunteer, there's no one to replace them. If you don't pay attention, by the time you realize numbers have faded, you can find yourself in a deficit.

How did you go about developing a recruitment campaign?

We started by developing a recruitment committee made up of volunteers who have been willing to give time in addition to answering calls. Members were tasked with finding new ways to bring people in.

They are also in charge of following up with applicants and maintaining a dialog with them. Ten years ago we would have just taken their contact information and filed it until we needed a volunteer, who by that time, may not even be interested anymore. Now we maintain communication with applicants to maintain interest. We run organized groups of training so there can be a wait until the next available training session. But we offer ride alongs, classes, etc. to keep their interest while they're waiting. We let them know the schedule so they know what to work toward. There's more structure to the process.

What are the components of your campaign?

One aspect is reaching out to local community groups, such as Lions Clubs, Rotary Clubs and cultural organizations by offering classes in CPR, first aid, etc. at our headquarters. We focus on these groups because their members are already community minded. We offer the classes at our headquarters because we have found that one of the biggest roadblocks that prevents people from joining our department is intimidation of the building itself, so one emphasis of our recruitment program is finding ways to get people to come through the doors. If we can get them onto the property and expose them to the environment -- a lot of times we get a call or sometimes multiple calls -- it brings attention to what we do and how they can help.

Once we get them through the doors, we need to follow through. In the past, we had some issues with getting people in, then losing interest because nothing happened. They left because they weren't getting what they needed. We now have guidelines and structure so they know what to expect. They know when they're getting training. They know when they'll start riding in the ambulance.

We also reach out to Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts through our youth program Explorer Post 325, which is a co-ed division of the Boy Scouts of America. Boys and girls age 13 to 18 are encouraged to join to learn about EMS. We teach them CPR and many first aid skills. At age 16 they can ride in the ambulance and answer 9-1-1 calls with a trained crew member mentoring them. Many current volunteers were members of this program, and we've even had some troop leaders join because of this exposure.

We recently became an advanced life support preceptor site for paramedic/critical care technician students at Suffolk County Community College and Stony Brook University. The mindset behind this focus is that we're targeting people who are already EMTs looking to further their education. Because we have such a large call volume -- in excess of 7,000 calls last year -- they can join our department to gain experience and training that they can take back to their own community.

We also have reevaluated retention tools. We currently have a tuition assistance program for the community college. Members who agree to serve a certain amount of time as a volunteer and maintain a certain grade point average, are eligible for partial tuition reimbursement, which is funded through grants. We also offer property tax reductions for volunteers who have been certified members of the department for five years. A service awards program started about 10 years operates similar to a pension fund. We've set aside a small amount of money for each person. After five years, they're vested and can begin collecting at age 65. Currently, we aren't able to set aside a lot of money, but we hope to bolster the program down the road. To help offset the cost of health insurance, we've received authorization for our volunteer members to purchase health insurance for themselves and their families at the same rate as municipal town employees. It can save them a lot of money over having to get insurance on their own.

We also promote our department and events via an LED message board in front of our department that was paid for via grant funds. It keeps the community informed about CPR classes, blood drives, open houses, etc. and generates interest in the department A ride-along program also helps recruit people who are curious about what we do. In addition, we offer our building as a community space for various organizations, such as our local neighborhood watch program. Again, it's a way to get people in the door.

How has your campaign been received by your community?

It's been very well received. We've been getting a lot of requests for CPR and first aid classes, which helps get people through our door. The more people we can get to come in, the more the program will roll ahead.

How successful has the campaign been so far?

In 2009, we had 37 new members and have retained 26 of them. Almost all of them are now EMTs. This year, we have 31 new members so far, six who have joined as EMTs through the preceptor courses. We have an additional 12 people who are joining a class this month.

What advice do you have for other agencies struggling to recruit new members?

Our recruitment campaign doesn't require a lot of money. Short of the grants for our message board and CPR courses, it's not a question of spending a lot of money on brochures and pens. It's about getting our members out into the community and following up with applicants. It's about becoming an integral part of the community. Breaking the ice is the hardest part.

DEPARTMENT PROFILE: Brentwood Legion Ambulance Service, Long Island, NY

Type of department: Third-service, combination volunteer/paid

Number of employees: 27 per diem employees, 1 full-time supervisor, 208 active volunteer members

Service area (population and square miles): About 105,000 residents, 23 square miles

Call volume: 7,033 calls in 2009; 4,094 calls through July 30, 2010

Number of vehicles: 8 advanced life support ambulances, 2 basic life support first response units, 2 advanced life support first response units, 5 command vehicles

Annual operating budget and major sources of operating revenue: About $1.4 million primarily from property taxes with no patient billing

What makes your service different or unique: We're largely a volunteer service. We have a full crew of at least an EMT and a driver available 24/7. Paid and volunteer members work together to form a crew. We also developed an Explorer Post Youth Squad, which is a co-ed youth program with the Boy Scouts of America for youth ages 13 to 18.

Recent changes or improvements undertaken to offer better care/service: We recently added mandatory CME requirements for our members to maintain active status. We have been providing in-house classes at least once per month. Classes are led by outside instructions and we cover everything from document reviews to OB/GYN topics.

We are also now part of a five-member county-wide cooperative program. During times when it's difficult to get volunteers, such as Monday through Friday 6 a.m. to 6 p.m., each third-party service staffs an additional ambulance on their designated day that responses without boundaries. This system provides quicker response than standard mutual aid. We staff an additional ambulance on Fridays so there is always an ambulance ready for surge moments.

Recent technology or equipment upgrades: Over the past two years we've transferred all of our ALS equipment to Philips MRx 12-lead cardiac monitors. Now we have uniform cardiac monitoring equipment in every vehicle in the department. This simplifies training because everyone uses the same equipment. Other departments in town have also upgraded to the same equipment so when we have other ambulances come in, everyone is familiar with the equipment.

Any new or unusual protocols: We recently started designating STEMI centers and using 12-lead transmission capabilities.

Special projects or programs you conduct or participate in: We just received a grant for a CPR program that is designed as a familiarization program to give community members a better idea of what CPR is and how to do it. We want to educate them about the importance of quick bystander intervention, which now doesn't require ventilation. We intend to loan out the equipment for community groups to use. We hope to have the program in place early next year.

How do you reduce costs or maximize limited funding: Keeping costs down is reliant on keeping volunteers coming in. We've worked hard to improve recruitment. We also keep costs down by remounting ambulance module boxes. We keep a vehicle in service for about five years, then buy a new chassis and remount the box. We've mounted one box three times. We can save about half the cost of a new ambulance.

Plans for the future: 1.) Continue to find ways to maintain the active volunteer recruitment program. 2.) Build an annex building on the headquarters property to expand vehicle capacity from six to eight ambulances. 3.) Upgrade the dispatch system to a computerized system that will coincide with the county's dispatch program.