New Hampshire Fire Departments Increasingly Responding to Medical Calls

April 12—When emergency apparatus roll out of fire houses across the state, lights flashing and sirens blaring, odds are the first responders on board aren't on their way to battle a blaze. Instead, more often than not they are called to medical emergencies, a trend fire officials say is mirrored across the country.

"There was a time when fighting fires was all we did," said Goffstown Fire Chief Richard O'Brien, President of the New Hampshire Association of Fire Chiefs. "Now we are more along the lines of all-hazard response systems."

"It seems more people are calling 911 for medical needs," said Nashua Assistant Fire Chief Steven Galipeau. "In the current medical climate, they get right in to see someone if they are transported to a health care provider by us, instead of waiting in a room to be seen if they go in on their own."

O'Brien said firefighters are available to respond to the medical calls because, simply put, there just aren't as many fires these days, a result of a fire prevention program launched in the 1980s.

"We have the ability to take on this role, due to staffing and resources," said O'Brien.

In Goffstown, between 70 and 80 percent of calls are medically related, O'Brien said. Similar numbers were reported by Concord.

In Manchester, firefighters responded to 14,392 medical calls in 2013, according to the fire department's annual report. The number rose to 15,907 in 2014, compared to 133 calls to structure fires. Ten years ago, the department responded to 10,390 medical calls, and 162 structure fires.

"We're up 1,000 calls in 2015, over last year at this time, and about 90 percent of those are medical calls," said Manchester Deputy Chief Daniel Goonan. "I would say a majority of those are drug-related."

In Laconia, the most recent annual report filed by the fire department shows crews responded to 3,896 medical emergency calls in 2014, compared to 125 actual fires.

According to the state Fire Marshal's office, 61 percent of all calls for service placed to New Hampshire fire departments in 2013 were for medical treatment, up from 60.6 percent in 2012 and 57.66 percent in 2011.

"It's something we're seeing across the country, not just in New Hampshire," said Deborah Pendergast, Director of the state's Fire Academy in Concord. "We've changed our course offerings and trainings to reflect the growing need, including training to administer Narcan to overdose victims, due to rising incidents involving heroin."

Nationally, the number of EMS calls to fire departments has increased nearly 300 percent since 1980, according to the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA).

In 1986, fire departments nationwide fielded 11.9 million calls—19 percent fire-related, and 54 percent medical. By 2012, the most recent statistics available from the National Fire Production Association, departments received more than 31.8 million calls, of which 4.3 percent were fire-related and 68 percent medical. Other calls include false alarms, mutual aid and hazardous materials.

As emergency demands shift nationwide, more departments are diversifying their services by offering medical assistance, according to an NFPA release. About 65 percent of the country's fire departments offered emergency medical services in 2002, according to the U.S. Fire Administration, and would climb to 72 percent in 2014.

Hall said the increase can be traced to several factors, including growing awareness by the public awareness that fire departments often provide medical services.

"This is a trend we've seen since the 1970s," said O'Brien. "Back then, there were many fires. Over the years, thanks to changes in building codes, fire prevention efforts, the installation of smoke alarms and sprinklers, the number of fires has dropped dramatically."

Nashua Fire Rescue responds to about 300 fires a year in the city, but only 60 or so are considered large building fires, according to Nashua Assistant Fire Chief Steven Galipeau.

"The types of incidents we respond to cover a much wider range than we used to," said Galipeau. "There are a lot of hazardous material calls, motor vehicle accidents, and some are false alarms."

"Since 1996, every Nashua firefighter is an EMT-basic or higher. It's a qualification requirement to be hired," said Galipeau, who noted that most trucks carry defibrillators.

An EMT, short for emergency medical technician, is a first responder trained to provide medical treatment at the scene of an accident or other crisis.

"We are basically a first-responder EMS service, responding to life-threatening emergencies across the city," said Galipeau. "As the number of fires declines, the need for all-hazards responders continues to rise."