Pa. Fire Department Fast-tracks Ambulance Service

Jan. 26--With roughly 30 emergency medical technicians already on staff and 12 paramedics, the Exeter Township Fire Department already has some of the key puzzle pieces in place to become the primary 9-1-1 service provider for township residents.

But fire officials acknowledge that there's still work to do, and the department's in-house EMS service likely won't be fully functioning when the calender hits March 23.

That's the date when the department takes over the reins from the Exeter Ambulance Association as the designated 9-1-1 responder.

Since the township supervisors made the decision to tap the fire department last month, questions have arisen over the transition to a fire department-based EMS service and how such a model would work in the township that, for the past four decades, has been covered predominantly by the ambulance association.

Among the biggest concerns: Will the quality of service suffer? What happens if the department isn't ready to roll come March 23? And, why mess with the status quo?

Fire officials say it's a move they have been anticipating for months, and as a result, much of the transition process has already been planned.

Speaking as a group in an email to the Reading Eagle, they called the new fire department-based EMS "a first-date all hazards emergency response service" that will be among the first of its kind in Berks County.

"From an EMS standpoint, the medical care provided will be at the same level" as the ambulance association, fire officials said. "The difference will be in how we deploy the personnel, and the fact that our personnel will be trained to perform both firefighting and emergency medical services tasks."

The Exeter Fire Department received a license in 2005 to provide EMS services at the quick-response level. With that license, the department is able to provide care on a scene, but not ambulance transport.

An application is pending with for an additional ambulance service license, which the department hopes to have within the next two months. Additional licensing and approvals must be secured from the state Department of Health and the Center for Medicaid and Medicare Services, a process that department officials acknowledge will likely take longer than the deadline.

So fire officials say they have made arrangements with neighboring ambulance services to assist in providing coverage in the interim.

"The Exeter Township Fire Department realistically realizes that our ambulance service will not be fully ready by March 23," fire officials said. "The Muhlenberg Area Ambulance Association has graciously offered to provide coverage, and the department is in discussions with several other agencies who have expressed interest in assisting as well."

At previous public meetings, fire officials have said that it's likely a Muhlenberg ambulance could be housed in Exeter Township. Also, Exeter Fire Department medical personnel will continue to be available for emergencies during that time.

Months ago the fire department purchased two ambulances, which are undergoing maintenance and being fitted for service.

"The transition to the new combined fire/EMS model will be essentially transparent to the public, except that some of the personnel who respond to (9-1-1) emergency medical calls may arrive on a fire truck," department officials said.

Some have questioned the advantages of a service model that is untested.

Fire officials reply with two words: flexibility and efficiency.

"Using one workforce to perform multiple roles," they said, "the responders on both ambulances and fire trucks will be highly skilled technicians capable of handling any type of emergency that may occur. This helps ensure that the right responder is at the right place at the right time, no matter what type of emergency."

Contact Becca Y. Gregg: 610-371-5032 or bgregg@readingeagle.com.

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