Starke County EMS Director Paul Mathewson informed the Commissioners this week that he is getting everything ready to switch the county from Basic Life Support Service to Advanced Life Support Service as soon as possible.
Today he will be meeting with state regulators to get the ambulances licensed for Advanced Life Support service. Mathewson was asked why the change in licensing for the vehicles is necessary.
“There’s a whole number of things,” he explained. “When you’re dealing with any kind of change, you’re dealing with a lot of different aspects of that change. I can’t really give one particular aspect other than you’re dealing with everything from doing intravenous care to different types of patients. There’s so many things that it’s tough to say exactly what is being changed because there’s a whole bunch of paperwork that needs to be done and filed.”
Mathewson said he’s been on a fast pace to get everything ready to make the cross over to ALS service.
“We’ve been doing a lot of stuff since August. This is just another step towards getting there. It’s a big step to get there because you can’t move an ambulance if it isn’t certified. This is another big step and a very important one.”
Mathewson said that the goal to make the switch is the first of the year.
Mathewson is a paramedic and was hired earlier this summer to help bring the county up to ALS standards.
