Calif. City Pushes for Firefighter EMS Training
CHULA VISTA, Calif. --
Chula Vista residents could see faster response times when it comes to medical emergencies in their city.
The average response time for Chula Vista firefighters is approximately seven minutes. The response time for an AMR ambulance and the paramedic that rides with it is about ten minutes. That means a person in need of major medical treatment will have to wait an additional three minutes before receiving care.
Chula Vista is the only fire department in San Diego County whose firefighters are not paramedics as well.
Chances of survival greatly increase the faster that someone receives medical attention.
"That three minutes is a huge deal when it comes to providing advanced life support," said Chula Vista Fire Chief Dave Hanneman.
Hanneman is pushing for his 120 firefighters to be trained as paramedics as well. He said it makes sense because 85 percent of the calls they respond to are for medical reasons. Only 2 percent are for actual fires.
However, the increased training means increased costs. Hanneman said the costs would be about $1 million a year. He said the money would not come out of the city's general fund, which has been depleted by massive budget cuts during the last four years.
The money would come from an increase in costs in ambulance services. Currently, Chula Vista residents pay the lowest rate for ambulance transport in the county at about $800. The county average is $1,600. Chula Vista City Council will consider increasing the rate in the next few months. It would pay for the training and offset some of the budget cuts the fire department has endured.
"If we do it as part of a plan to consolidate services, we can end up spending pennies to save dollars," said Chula Vista Taxpayers Association President Larry Breitfelder.
If Chula Vista City Council approves the changes, the city has 15 firefighter paramedics they can deploy immediately.
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