Pulaski County is easing its new restrictions on ambulance transfers, following discussions with hospital officials. Earlier this month, the county commissioners voted to reduce the transfer radius from 100 to 65 miles, to extend the life of the county’s ambulances. But that raised concern from doctors, since that puts the major trauma centers out of reach.
On Monday, Commissioner Chuck Mellon announced that the county has agreed to grant an exception for trauma situations. “We hope to continue conversation with the hospital and maybe other agencies also,” Mellon said, “just trying to alleviate this everlasting problem.”
Meanwhile, a measure to allow non-EMT-certified staff to work on Pulaski County’s ambulances is moving ahead. The commissioners approved EMS Director Brandon DeLorenzo’s recommended job description for a new EMS driver position. “Basically, what I did is just took out the job description of the basic EMT and took out the majority of the medical, left what the state requires, such as CPR, knowledge in triage, all stuff that, other than CPR, we can take care of in the orientation process,” DeLorenzo explained.
It gives Pulaski County EMS another option to deal with staffing shortages. But DeLorezno said he might not need the new position right away, since three people who are interested in it will soon have their full EMT certifications.
