Is the handwriting on the wall?

[Guest guest]

Fort Worth fire crews to cover gaps

By ANTHONY SPANGLER

Star-Telegram Staff Writer

FORT WORTH -- The city plans to spend $10,000 a day for off-duty

firefighters to answer the most serious emergency calls because ambulance

provider MedStar is failing to respond to calls in time, officials said

Monday.

Temporary crews are necessary, according to city documents, because of

MedStar staffing shortages and increased calls for service that have led to

extended response times citywide.

" We're going to do it for at least 10 days or as many as 30 days, " Assistant

City Manager Joe Paniagua said Monday. " There's no doubt that the tremendous

growth of the city has had an impact on this. "

MedStar's contract requires its crews to respond to 90 percent of Priority 1

calls -- emergencies with the most serious injuries -- within nine minutes.

MedStar has not met that goal in more than a year. Last month, ambulances

reached 79.3 percent of Priority 1 calls within nine minutes.

" For the first time in a long time, [MedStar] showed several calls that

exceeded the nine-minute goal, with about nine calls that were in excess of

20 minutes, " Paniagua said. " That's what precipitated us getting involved. "

The City Council has called an emergency meeting for today to discuss the

ambulance service and long response times.

An old problem

MedStar ambulance crews have had problems meeting response-time goals for

years. Last year, the Area Metropolitan Ambulance Authority, which operates

MedStar, ended its third-party contract with Rural-Metro and took over the

service.

Under the former system, MedStar could levy fines when goals were not met.

" Since MedStar has taken over the service, it is up in the air whether

MedStar can impose fines against itself, " Paniagua said. " Short of

terminating the contract, there isn't much we can do. "

The city, which pays MedStar about $1.3 million annually, can terminate the

contract at any time. But Paniagua stressed that Fort Worth has no intention

of pulling out.

Instead, the city plans to pay firefighters who are trained as paramedics or

emergency medical technicians, or EMTs, to work overtime until MedStar can

staff its ambulances properly.

Firefighters -- one paramedic and one EMT -- will staff six brush trucks

from stations 12, 17, 23, 24, 36 and 37. The crews will work during their 48

hours of downtime between regular shifts, said Fire Chief Rudy .

" These firefighters are working on their off time, " he said.

Firefighters have already been affected by MedStar staffing shortages

because they are often the first responders to emergencies.

" We're not going to drive away and leave a patient, " said Lt. Kent Worley, a

Fort Worth Fire Department spokesman. " We won't clear a scene until the

medical portion of the call is cleared. So if an ambulance hasn't arrived,

our fire crew is stuck on that call. "

MedStar shortages

MedStar needs 77 paramedics and 77 EMTs to staff ambulances that serve 15

cities in the Metroplex, including Fort Worth, said MedStar Executive

Director Jack Eades. It is short 16 paramedics and 22 EMTs, he said.

Two training classes will bring MedStar to full strength for EMTs by late

October, but it will still be short three paramedics, Eades said.

" A shortage of paramedics and EMTs is a national problem, " he said.

Starting pay is $25,618 for EMTs with no experience and $37,357 for

paramedics with no experience.

During recent budget discussions, council members acknowledged that building

infrastructure and providing emergency service is lagging behind the city's

growth.

Councilman Danny Scarth, the city representative to the ambulance authority,

said MedStar is meeting goals in most cases.

" There is no doubt they are understaffed, " he said. " It is certainly better

than it was a few years ago when they had a private contractor that was

handling everything.

" But there have been some isolated incidents where the calls have been

longer than the goal of nine minutes. "

E. Bledsoe, DO, FACEP

Midlothian, Texas

[Guest guest]

Looks like the paramedic shortage needs to be handled differently. Why is it

that only a college can handle a coordinators ability to put on a class. I want

to put on an EMT through paramedic class. I believe that it would bring more

interest to this rural area that I manage. I would like to start an academy of

sorts. I believe that the institutions of higher education are herding in folks

for the money and not the quality. I would like to change that.

Just some thoughts.

Stan Brandt CCEMT-P

Director of EMS

" Bledsoe, DO " wrote:

Fort Worth fire crews to cover gaps

By ANTHONY SPANGLER

Star-Telegram Staff Writer

FORT WORTH -- The city plans to spend $10,000 a day for off-duty

firefighters to answer the most serious emergency calls because ambulance

provider MedStar is failing to respond to calls in time, officials said

Monday.

Temporary crews are necessary, according to city documents, because of

MedStar staffing shortages and increased calls for service that have led to

extended response times citywide.

" We're going to do it for at least 10 days or as many as 30 days, " Assistant

City Manager Joe Paniagua said Monday. " There's no doubt that the tremendous

growth of the city has had an impact on this. "

MedStar's contract requires its crews to respond to 90 percent of Priority 1

calls -- emergencies with the most serious injuries -- within nine minutes.

MedStar has not met that goal in more than a year. Last month, ambulances

reached 79.3 percent of Priority 1 calls within nine minutes.

" For the first time in a long time, [MedStar] showed several calls that

exceeded the nine-minute goal, with about nine calls that were in excess of

20 minutes, " Paniagua said. " That's what precipitated us getting involved. "

The City Council has called an emergency meeting for today to discuss the

ambulance service and long response times.

An old problem

MedStar ambulance crews have had problems meeting response-time goals for

years. Last year, the Area Metropolitan Ambulance Authority, which operates

MedStar, ended its third-party contract with Rural-Metro and took over the

service.

Under the former system, MedStar could levy fines when goals were not met.

" Since MedStar has taken over the service, it is up in the air whether

MedStar can impose fines against itself, " Paniagua said. " Short of

terminating the contract, there isn't much we can do. "

The city, which pays MedStar about $1.3 million annually, can terminate the

contract at any time. But Paniagua stressed that Fort Worth has no intention

of pulling out.

Instead, the city plans to pay firefighters who are trained as paramedics or

emergency medical technicians, or EMTs, to work overtime until MedStar can

staff its ambulances properly.

Firefighters -- one paramedic and one EMT -- will staff six brush trucks

from stations 12, 17, 23, 24, 36 and 37. The crews will work during their 48

hours of downtime between regular shifts, said Fire Chief Rudy .

" These firefighters are working on their off time, " he said.

Firefighters have already been affected by MedStar staffing shortages

because they are often the first responders to emergencies.

" We're not going to drive away and leave a patient, " said Lt. Kent Worley, a

Fort Worth Fire Department spokesman. " We won't clear a scene until the

medical portion of the call is cleared. So if an ambulance hasn't arrived,

our fire crew is stuck on that call. "

MedStar shortages

MedStar needs 77 paramedics and 77 EMTs to staff ambulances that serve 15

cities in the Metroplex, including Fort Worth, said MedStar Executive

Director Jack Eades. It is short 16 paramedics and 22 EMTs, he said.

Two training classes will bring MedStar to full strength for EMTs by late

October, but it will still be short three paramedics, Eades said.

" A shortage of paramedics and EMTs is a national problem, " he said.

Starting pay is $25,618 for EMTs with no experience and $37,357 for

paramedics with no experience.

During recent budget discussions, council members acknowledged that building

infrastructure and providing emergency service is lagging behind the city's

growth.

Councilman Danny Scarth, the city representative to the ambulance authority,

said MedStar is meeting goals in most cases.

" There is no doubt they are understaffed, " he said. " It is certainly better

than it was a few years ago when they had a private contractor that was

handling everything.

" But there have been some isolated incidents where the calls have been

longer than the goal of nine minutes. "

E. Bledsoe, DO, FACEP

Midlothian, Texas

[Guest guest]

Sounds like the city is getting off cheap for only 1.3 million and another 3.6

million for paying fire department medics to fill the gap. Real cheap. Just

imagine if they did it their self.

Henry

Is the handwriting on the wall?

Fort Worth fire crews to cover gaps

By ANTHONY SPANGLER

Star-Telegram Staff Writer

FORT WORTH -- The city plans to spend $10,000 a day for off-duty

firefighters to answer the most serious emergency calls because ambulance

provider MedStar is failing to respond to calls in time, officials said

Monday.

Temporary crews are necessary, according to city documents, because of

MedStar staffing shortages and increased calls for service that have led to

extended response times citywide.

" We're going to do it for at least 10 days or as many as 30 days, " Assistant

City Manager Joe Paniagua said Monday. " There's no doubt that the tremendous

growth of the city has had an impact on this. "

MedStar's contract requires its crews to respond to 90 percent of Priority 1

calls -- emergencies with the most serious injuries -- within nine minutes.

MedStar has not met that goal in more than a year. Last month, ambulances

reached 79.3 percent of Priority 1 calls within nine minutes.

" For the first time in a long time, [MedStar] showed several calls that

exceeded the nine-minute goal, with about nine calls that were in excess of

20 minutes, " Paniagua said. " That's what precipitated us getting involved. "

The City Council has called an emergency meeting for today to discuss the

ambulance service and long response times.

An old problem

MedStar ambulance crews have had problems meeting response-time goals for

years. Last year, the Area Metropolitan Ambulance Authority, which operates

MedStar, ended its third-party contract with Rural-Metro and took over the

service.

Under the former system, MedStar could levy fines when goals were not met.

" Since MedStar has taken over the service, it is up in the air whether

MedStar can impose fines against itself, " Paniagua said. " Short of

terminating the contract, there isn't much we can do. "

The city, which pays MedStar about $1.3 million annually, can terminate the

contract at any time. But Paniagua stressed that Fort Worth has no intention

of pulling out.

Instead, the city plans to pay firefighters who are trained as paramedics or

emergency medical technicians, or EMTs, to work overtime until MedStar can

staff its ambulances properly.

Firefighters -- one paramedic and one EMT -- will staff six brush trucks

from stations 12, 17, 23, 24, 36 and 37. The crews will work during their 48

hours of downtime between regular shifts, said Fire Chief Rudy .

" These firefighters are working on their off time, " he said.

Firefighters have already been affected by MedStar staffing shortages

because they are often the first responders to emergencies.

" We're not going to drive away and leave a patient, " said Lt. Kent Worley, a

Fort Worth Fire Department spokesman. " We won't clear a scene until the

medical portion of the call is cleared. So if an ambulance hasn't arrived,

our fire crew is stuck on that call. "

MedStar shortages

MedStar needs 77 paramedics and 77 EMTs to staff ambulances that serve 15

cities in the Metroplex, including Fort Worth, said MedStar Executive

Director Jack Eades. It is short 16 paramedics and 22 EMTs, he said.

Two training classes will bring MedStar to full strength for EMTs by late

October, but it will still be short three paramedics, Eades said.

" A shortage of paramedics and EMTs is a national problem, " he said.

Starting pay is $25,618 for EMTs with no experience and $37,357 for

paramedics with no experience.

During recent budget discussions, council members acknowledged that building

infrastructure and providing emergency service is lagging behind the city's

growth.

Councilman Danny Scarth, the city representative to the ambulance authority,

said MedStar is meeting goals in most cases.

" There is no doubt they are understaffed, " he said. " It is certainly better

than it was a few years ago when they had a private contractor that was

handling everything.

" But there have been some isolated incidents where the calls have been

longer than the goal of nine minutes. "

E. Bledsoe, DO, FACEP

Midlothian, Texas

[Guest guest]

While I realize there's more than one way to skin a cat, why do we keep

outsourcing EMS?? The public would never stand for the fire department or the

police department being run by a private contractor.? EMS keeps getting

outsourced to private contractors, just like garbage collection.? What does that

say about us?

And yes, before the flames start, I know there are some first-class private EMS

services. My complaint isn't with them. My complaint is with the county

commissioners and city council members who think that a new Caterpillar

bulldozer at the road barn is more important than ADEQUATELY funding prehospital

medical care.

Damn, it's 9/11/07 and the politicians are still screwing the first responders.?

More of the same crap.? I'm sure we'll see the usual press releases and speeches

from politicians telling us how they all support fire, police, and " rescue

workers. " -- whatever that means.? They don't even know the acronym EMS.

We're not any better off.? And it's not because of the asshole wearing the

turban who releases videos or because of Bush.? It's because?EMS, the public,

and the politicians continue to accept the status quo.

-Wes " I'm mad too, Eddie " Ogilvie

P.S. -- If you don't know who Eddie Chiles was, use Google.? (That's right, I'm

in a mood today.)

Re: Is the handwriting on the wall?

Sounds like the city is getting off cheap for only 1.3 million and another 3.6

million for paying fire department medics to fill the gap. Real cheap. Just

imagine if they did it their self.

Henry

Is the handwriting on the wall?

Fort Worth fire crews to cover gaps

By ANTHONY SPANGLER

Star-Telegram Staff Writer

FORT WORTH -- The city plans to spend $10,000 a day for off-duty

firefighters to answer the most serious emergency calls because ambulance

provider MedStar is failing to respond to calls in time, officials said

Monday.

Temporary crews are necessary, according to city documents, because of

MedStar staffing shortages and increased calls for service that have led to

extended response times citywide.

" We're going to do it for at least 10 days or as many as 30 days, " Assistant

City Manager Joe Paniagua said Monday. " There's no doubt that the tremendous

growth of the city has had an impact on this. "

MedStar's contract requires its crews to respond to 90 percent of Priority 1

calls -- emergencies with the most serious injuries -- within nine minutes.

MedStar has not met that goal in more than a year. Last month, ambulances

reached 79.3 percent of Priority 1 calls within nine minutes.

" For the first time in a long time, [MedStar] showed several calls that

exceeded the nine-minute goal, with about nine calls that were in excess of

20 minutes, " Paniagua said. " That's what precipitated us getting involved. "

The City Council has called an emergency meeting for today to discuss the

ambulance service and long response times.

An old problem

MedStar ambulance crews have had problems meeting response-time goals for

years. Last year, the Area Metropolitan Ambulance Authority, which operates

MedStar, ended its third-party contract with Rural-Metro and took over the

service.

Under the former system, MedStar could levy fines when goals were not met.

" Since MedStar has taken over the service, it is up in the air whether

MedStar can impose fines against itself, " Paniagua said. " Short of

terminating the contract, there isn't much we can do. "

The city, which pays MedStar about $1.3 million annually, can terminate the

contract at any time. But Paniagua stressed that Fort Worth has no intention

of pulling out.

Instead, the city plans to pay firefighters who are trained as paramedics or

emergency medical technicians, or EMTs, to work overtime until MedStar can

staff its ambulances properly.

Firefighters -- one paramedic and one EMT -- will staff six brush trucks

from stations 12, 17, 23, 24, 36 and 37. The crews will work during their 48

hours of downtime between regular shifts, said Fire Chief Rudy .

" These firefighters are working on their off time, " he said.

Firefighters have already been affected by MedStar staffing shortages

because they are often the first responders to emergencies.

" We're not going to drive away and leave a patient, " said Lt. Kent Worley, a

Fort Worth Fire Department spokesman. " We won't clear a scene until the

medical portion of the call is cleared. So if an ambulance hasn't arrived,

our fire crew is stuck on that call. "

MedStar shortages

MedStar needs 77 paramedics and 77 EMTs to staff ambulances that serve 15

cities in the Metroplex, including Fort Worth, said MedStar Executive

Director Jack Eades. It is short 16 paramedics and 22 EMTs, he said.

Two training classes will bring MedStar to full strength for EMTs by late

October, but it will still be short three paramedics, Eades said.

" A shortage of paramedics and EMTs is a national problem, " he said.

Starting pay is $25,618 for EMTs with no experience and $37,357 for

paramedics with no experience.

During recent budget discussions, council members acknowledged that building

infrastructure and providing emergency service is lagging behind the city's

growth.

Councilman Danny Scarth, the city representative to the ambulance authority,

said MedStar is meeting goals in most cases.

" There is no doubt they are understaffed, " he said. " It is certainly better

than it was a few years ago when they had a private contractor that was

handling everything.

" But there have been some isolated incidents where the calls have been

longer than the goal of nine minutes. "

E. Bledsoe, DO, FACEP

Midlothian, Texas

[Guest guest]

Looks like SSM is still do'in it's thing. Maybe if there were as many

ambulances as fire, then we would'nt be having this conversation... 1.3 mil -

dirt cheap!!!!!!

________________________________

From: texasems-l [texasems-l ] On Behalf Of Henry

Barber [hbarber@...]

Sent: Tuesday, September 11, 2007 9:03 AM

To: texasems-l

Subject: Re: Is the handwriting on the wall?

Sounds like the city is getting off cheap for only 1.3 million and another 3.6

million for paying fire department medics to fill the gap. Real cheap. Just

imagine if they did it their self.

Henry

Is the handwriting on the wall?

Fort Worth fire crews to cover gaps

By ANTHONY SPANGLER

Star-Telegram Staff Writer

FORT WORTH -- The city plans to spend $10,000 a day for off-duty

firefighters to answer the most serious emergency calls because ambulance

provider MedStar is failing to respond to calls in time, officials said

Monday.

Temporary crews are necessary, according to city documents, because of

MedStar staffing shortages and increased calls for service that have led to

extended response times citywide.

" We're going to do it for at least 10 days or as many as 30 days, " Assistant

City Manager Joe Paniagua said Monday. " There's no doubt that the tremendous

growth of the city has had an impact on this. "

MedStar's contract requires its crews to respond to 90 percent of Priority 1

calls -- emergencies with the most serious injuries -- within nine minutes.

MedStar has not met that goal in more than a year. Last month, ambulances

reached 79.3 percent of Priority 1 calls within nine minutes.

" For the first time in a long time, [MedStar] showed several calls that

exceeded the nine-minute goal, with about nine calls that were in excess of

20 minutes, " Paniagua said. " That's what precipitated us getting involved. "

The City Council has called an emergency meeting for today to discuss the

ambulance service and long response times.

An old problem

MedStar ambulance crews have had problems meeting response-time goals for

years. Last year, the Area Metropolitan Ambulance Authority, which operates

MedStar, ended its third-party contract with Rural-Metro and took over the

service.

Under the former system, MedStar could levy fines when goals were not met.

" Since MedStar has taken over the service, it is up in the air whether

MedStar can impose fines against itself, " Paniagua said. " Short of

terminating the contract, there isn't much we can do. "

The city, which pays MedStar about $1.3 million annually, can terminate the

contract at any time. But Paniagua stressed that Fort Worth has no intention

of pulling out.

Instead, the city plans to pay firefighters who are trained as paramedics or

emergency medical technicians, or EMTs, to work overtime until MedStar can

staff its ambulances properly.

Firefighters -- one paramedic and one EMT -- will staff six brush trucks

from stations 12, 17, 23, 24, 36 and 37. The crews will work during their 48

hours of downtime between regular shifts, said Fire Chief Rudy .

" These firefighters are working on their off time, " he said.

Firefighters have already been affected by MedStar staffing shortages

because they are often the first responders to emergencies.

" We're not going to drive away and leave a patient, " said Lt. Kent Worley, a

Fort Worth Fire Department spokesman. " We won't clear a scene until the

medical portion of the call is cleared. So if an ambulance hasn't arrived,

our fire crew is stuck on that call. "

MedStar shortages

MedStar needs 77 paramedics and 77 EMTs to staff ambulances that serve 15

cities in the Metroplex, including Fort Worth, said MedStar Executive

Director Jack Eades. It is short 16 paramedics and 22 EMTs, he said.

Two training classes will bring MedStar to full strength for EMTs by late

October, but it will still be short three paramedics, Eades said.

" A shortage of paramedics and EMTs is a national problem, " he said.

Starting pay is $25,618 for EMTs with no experience and $37,357 for

paramedics with no experience.

During recent budget discussions, council members acknowledged that building

infrastructure and providing emergency service is lagging behind the city's

growth.

Councilman Danny Scarth, the city representative to the ambulance authority,

said MedStar is meeting goals in most cases.

" There is no doubt they are understaffed, " he said. " It is certainly better

than it was a few years ago when they had a private contractor that was

handling everything.

" But there have been some isolated incidents where the calls have been

longer than the goal of nine minutes. "

E. Bledsoe, DO, FACEP

Midlothian, Texas

[Guest guest]

Only real solution is to increase pay for all levels in order to

encourage more quality people to enter EMS. Offer additional pay for

more ems related education. Over time this would lead to more

education required even for entry level jobs in EMS. Thus we would see

better educated EMS professionals. How do we expect to attract quality

people when the hamburger flipper with no education is paid as good or

better than EMS people?

Fire and EMS should be seperate. Enough said.

[Guest guest]

>

> Only real solution is to increase pay for all levels in order to

> encourage more quality people to enter EMS. Offer additional pay for

> more ems related education. Over time this would lead to more

> education required even for entry level jobs in EMS. Thus we would

see

> better educated EMS professionals. How do we expect to attract

quality

> people when the hamburger flipper with no education is paid as good

or

> better than EMS people?

>

> Fire and EMS should be seperate. Enough said.

>

OOPs sorry to sign off on my opinion.

Renny Spencer

[Guest guest]

If the system where properly funded by the cities that

Medstar serves then maybe they could afford to go away

from SSM and station trucks throughout there territory

and cut down on the burnout rate and high turnover

that goes with the high call volume and posting all

shift.

Will

--- Hudson wrote:

> Looks like SSM is still do'in it's thing. Maybe if

> there were as many ambulances as fire, then we

> would'nt be having this conversation... 1.3 mil -

> dirt cheap!!!!!!

> ________________________________

> From: texasems-l

> [texasems-l ] On Behalf Of Henry

> Barber [hbarber@...]

> Sent: Tuesday, September 11, 2007 9:03 AM

> To: texasems-l

> Subject: Re: Is the handwriting on the

> wall?

>

>

> Sounds like the city is getting off cheap for only

> 1.3 million and another 3.6 million for paying fire

> department medics to fill the gap. Real cheap. Just

> imagine if they did it their self.

>

> Henry

> Is the handwriting on the

> wall?

>

> Fort Worth fire crews to cover gaps

>

> By ANTHONY SPANGLER

>

> Star-Telegram Staff Writer

>

> FORT WORTH -- The city plans to spend $10,000 a day

> for off-duty

> firefighters to answer the most serious emergency

> calls because ambulance

> provider MedStar is failing to respond to calls in

> time, officials said

> Monday.

>

> Temporary crews are necessary, according to city

> documents, because of

> MedStar staffing shortages and increased calls for

> service that have led to

> extended response times citywide.

>

> " We're going to do it for at least 10 days or as

> many as 30 days, " Assistant

> City Manager Joe Paniagua said Monday. " There's no

> doubt that the tremendous

> growth of the city has had an impact on this. "

>

> MedStar's contract requires its crews to respond to

> 90 percent of Priority 1

> calls -- emergencies with the most serious injuries

> -- within nine minutes.

>

> MedStar has not met that goal in more than a year.

> Last month, ambulances

> reached 79.3 percent of Priority 1 calls within nine

> minutes.

>

> " For the first time in a long time, [MedStar] showed

> several calls that

> exceeded the nine-minute goal, with about nine calls

> that were in excess of

> 20 minutes, " Paniagua said. " That's what

> precipitated us getting involved. "

>

> The City Council has called an emergency meeting for

> today to discuss the

> ambulance service and long response times.

>

> An old problem

>

> MedStar ambulance crews have had problems meeting

> response-time goals for

> years. Last year, the Area Metropolitan Ambulance

> Authority, which operates

> MedStar, ended its third-party contract with

> Rural-Metro and took over the

> service.

>

> Under the former system, MedStar could levy fines

> when goals were not met.

>

> " Since MedStar has taken over the service, it is up

> in the air whether

> MedStar can impose fines against itself, " Paniagua

> said. " Short of

> terminating the contract, there isn't much we can

> do. "

>

> The city, which pays MedStar about $1.3 million

> annually, can terminate the

> contract at any time. But Paniagua stressed that

> Fort Worth has no intention

> of pulling out.

>

> Instead, the city plans to pay firefighters who are

> trained as paramedics or

> emergency medical technicians, or EMTs, to work

> overtime until MedStar can

> staff its ambulances properly.

>

> Firefighters -- one paramedic and one EMT -- will

> staff six brush trucks

> from stations 12, 17, 23, 24, 36 and 37. The crews

> will work during their 48

> hours of downtime between regular shifts, said Fire

> Chief Rudy .

>

> " These firefighters are working on their off time, "

> he said.

>

> Firefighters have already been affected by MedStar

> staffing shortages

> because they are often the first responders to

> emergencies.

>

> " We're not going to drive away and leave a patient, "

> said Lt. Kent Worley, a

> Fort Worth Fire Department spokesman. " We won't

> clear a scene until the

> medical portion of the call is cleared. So if an

> ambulance hasn't arrived,

> our fire crew is stuck on that call. "

>

> MedStar shortages

>

> MedStar needs 77 paramedics and 77 EMTs to staff

> ambulances that serve 15

> cities in the Metroplex, including Fort Worth, said

> MedStar Executive

> Director Jack Eades. It is short 16 paramedics and

> 22 EMTs, he said.

>

> Two training classes will bring MedStar to full

> strength for EMTs by late

> October, but it will still be short three

> paramedics, Eades said.

>

> " A shortage of paramedics and EMTs is a national

> problem, " he said.

>

> Starting pay is $25,618 for EMTs with no experience

> and $37,357 for

> paramedics with no experience.

>

> During recent budget discussions, council members

> acknowledged that building

> infrastructure and providing emergency service is

> lagging behind the city's

> growth.

>

> Councilman Danny Scarth, the city representative to

> the ambulance authority,

> said MedStar is meeting goals in most cases.

>

> " There is no doubt they are understaffed, " he said.

> " It is certainly better

> than it was a few years ago when they had a private

> contractor that was

> handling everything.

>

> " But there have been some isolated incidents where

> the calls have been

> longer than the goal of nine minutes. "

>

> E. Bledsoe, DO, FACEP

>

> Midlothian, Texas

>

> [Non-text portions of this message have been

> removed]

>

>

----------------------------------------------------------

>

> No virus found in this incoming message.

> Checked by AVG Free Edition.

> Version: 7.5.485 / Virus Database: 269.13.14/999 -

> Release Date: 9/10/2007 5:43 PM

>

> [Non-text portions of this message have been

> removed]

>

>

>

>

________________________________________________________________________________\

____

Moody friends. Drama queens. Your life? Nope! - their life, your story. Play

Sims Stories at Yahoo! Games.

http://sims.yahoo.com/

[Guest guest]

the real question here is how do we expect to be better paid when EMS itself is

not fully funded or mandated as is fire protection and or police protection.

When EMS is fully funded then maybe we will start to see some light at the end

of the tunnel.

Salvador Capuchino Jr

EMT-Paramedic

Re: Is the handwriting on the wall?

Only real solution is to increase pay for all levels in order to

encourage more quality people to enter EMS. Offer additional pay for

more ems related education. Over time this would lead to more

education required even for entry level jobs in EMS. Thus we would see

better educated EMS professionals. How do we expect to attract quality

people when the hamburger flipper with no education is paid as good or

better than EMS people?

Fire and EMS should be seperate. Enough said.

[Guest guest]

Fire protection isn't mandated. And the only mandates for law enforcement are

that the Texas Constitution provides that each county has a sheriff and at least

one constable (although some counties have abolished the constable's office).

And would mandating EMS ensure better pay? One thing that seems to be an

ongoing fallacy is that EMS should break even or even make money because of

insurance and Medicare/Medicaid. While there's some cost recovery, I can't

think of too many places that make enough to break even -- unless it's either by

short-staffing or poor pay.

-Wes Ogilvie

Re: Re: Is the handwriting on the wall?

the real question here is how do we expect to be better paid when EMS itself is

not fully funded or mandated as is fire protection and or police protection.

When EMS is fully funded then maybe we will start to see some light at the end

of the tunnel.

Salvador Capuchino Jr

EMT-Paramedic

Re: Is the handwriting on the wall?

Only real solution is to increase pay for all levels in order to

encourage more quality people to enter EMS. Offer additional pay for

more ems related education. Over time this would lead to more

education required even for entry level jobs in EMS. Thus we would see

better educated EMS professionals. How do we expect to attract quality

people when the hamburger flipper with no education is paid as good or

better than EMS people?

Fire and EMS should be seperate. Enough said.

[Guest guest]

LEts look at it this guys and girls. We as an industry are not very old at all.

As with everything else we all have to come together as agroup and hire a

lobbiest for our needs to be taked to the poweres at be. We are hurting for

help as anyother EMS provider and the solution lies with groups such as NAEMT's

or whats that other one?? Can't remember off hand. We really need to push our

employees to get invovled as well becauseit directly involves them and their

carriers.

ExLngHrn@... wrote:

Fire protection isn't mandated. And the only mandates for law enforcement are

that the Texas Constitution provides that each county has a sheriff and at least

one constable (although some counties have abolished the constable's office).

And would mandating EMS ensure better pay? One thing that seems to be an

ongoing fallacy is that EMS should break even or even make money because of

insurance and Medicare/Medicaid. While there's some cost recovery, I can't

think of too many places that make enough to break even -- unless it's either by

short-staffing or poor pay.

-Wes Ogilvie

Re: Re: Is the handwriting on the wall?

the real question here is how do we expect to be better paid when EMS itself is

not fully funded or mandated as is fire protection and or police protection.

When EMS is fully funded then maybe we will start to see some light at the end

of the tunnel.

Salvador Capuchino Jr

EMT-Paramedic

Re: Is the handwriting on the wall?

Only real solution is to increase pay for all levels in order to

encourage more quality people to enter EMS. Offer additional pay for

more ems related education. Over time this would lead to more

education required even for entry level jobs in EMS. Thus we would see

better educated EMS professionals. How do we expect to attract quality

people when the hamburger flipper with no education is paid as good or

better than EMS people?

Fire and EMS should be seperate. Enough said.

[Guest guest]

The City of Fort Worth will not fix its EMS issues until one of two things

happens, the city and the " Authority " recognize " MedStar " as a city service

with the appropriate salaries and benefits of a city employee or, EMS is

placed under the fire department. Word on the street has always been that

the FD doesn't want EMS in " their " stations. But, unfortunately, this is the

thinking in a lot of FD's that have never had to operate an ambulance. I

work for one of the " contracted agency " cities that are serviced by MedStar.

In my humble opinion, I look forward to the day that we are able to say

good-bye to MedStar, and able to provide our citizens with a higher quality

of patient care.

Chuck ez

Firefighter/Paramedic

Burleson Fire Department/Everman EMS

_____

From: texasems-l [mailto:texasems-l ] On

Behalf Of ExLngHrn@...

Sent: Tuesday, September 11, 2007 2:12 PM

To: texasems-l

Subject: Re: Re: Is the handwriting on the wall?

Fire protection isn't mandated. And the only mandates for law enforcement

are that the Texas Constitution provides that each county has a sheriff and

at least one constable (although some counties have abolished the

constable's office).

And would mandating EMS ensure better pay? One thing that seems to be an

ongoing fallacy is that EMS should break even or even make money because of

insurance and Medicare/Medicaid. While there's some cost recovery, I can't

think of too many places that make enough to break even -- unless it's

either by short-staffing or poor pay.

-Wes Ogilvie

Re: Re: Is the handwriting on the wall?

the real question here is how do we expect to be better paid when EMS itself

is not fully funded or mandated as is fire protection and or police

protection. When EMS is fully funded then maybe we will start to see some

light at the end of the tunnel.

Salvador Capuchino Jr

EMT-Paramedic

Re: Is the handwriting on the wall?

Only real solution is to increase pay for all levels in order to

encourage more quality people to enter EMS. Offer additional pay for

more ems related education. Over time this would lead to more

education required even for entry level jobs in EMS. Thus we would see

better educated EMS professionals. How do we expect to attract quality

people when the hamburger flipper with no education is paid as good or

better than EMS people?

Fire and EMS should be seperate. Enough said.

[Guest guest]

I remember when MedStar was " The Star " in EMS. The ambulance authority was

seen as being " the solution " to the problems of providing EMS. It was

supposed to be a model system.

Now, how many years later (?) we know that the system's design was flawed.

We have learned many things since The Authoritiy was set up, but unfortunately

the " powers that be " in Ft. Worth have not acted upon what they have learned

or should have learned and what everybody else knows:

SSM is a fatally flawed concept. It ruins individual workers, burns them

out, and it is an irrational approach to the mission. Yet, Stoutian Cool-Aid

Drinkers, among whom there are many in MedStar's

management, refuse to face reality. So do the politicians. Of course, we

cannot expect much from the politicians because their ONE concern is getting

themselves re-elected, and they cannot be bothered with learning about

essential services. [Oh, Excuuuuuuuse me! EMS is NOT an essential service.

Slap

my hand.]

If SSM were so good, why do we have fire stations?

MedStar was based upon the concept of hiring a contractee to run the service,

and it was a low bid sort of thing. That didn't work. It will never work.

You get what you pay for, but the people deserve what they get because they

vote for the folks who decide what they get.

Now that The Authority is running MedStar, one would have thought that it

could have corrected the problems that its former contractees had, because it

certainly had plenty of opportunity to observe their operations and learn what

NOT to do from them, but apparently the vaccine didn't work.

The old way of bidding was to underbid, get the contract, then come up with

an ultimatum for an increase in subsidy based on " changed circumstances. "

Some of the former contractees were masters of that craft.

Now that The Authority is running it, it cannot rely on those subterfuges.

What seems to be needed is some straight talk from the managers to the

politicians, and an infusion of cash. There are plenty of good medics looking

for

jobs, no matter how big the " shortage. " Good medics go to the highest

bidder. Who would want to work for MedStar for what they pay?

Gene G.

> -Wes Ogilvie

>

> Re: Re: Is the handwriting on the wall?

>

> the real question here is how do we expect to be better paid when EMS itself

> is not fully funded or mandated as is fire protection and or police

> protection. When EMS is fully funded then maybe we will start to see some

> light at the end of the tunnel.

> Salvador Capuchino Jr

> EMT-Paramedic

>

> Re: Is the handwriting on the wall?

>

> Only real solution is to increase pay for all levels in order to

> encourage more quality people to enter EMS. Offer additional pay for

> more ems related education. Over time this would lead to more

> education required even for entry level jobs in EMS. Thus we would see

> better educated EMS professionals. How do we expect to attract quality

> people when the hamburger flipper with no education is paid as good or

> better than EMS people?

>

> Fire and EMS should be seperate. Enough said.

>

>

[Guest guest]

Unfortunately we have discovered that neither fire nor law enforcement is

mandated in Texas except that each county will elect a sheriff...

Big brother may not be the solution to this....at least not on a large scale.

Dudley

Re: Re: Is the handwriting on the wall?

the real question here is how do we expect to be better paid when EMS itself is

not fully funded or mandated as is fire protection and or police protection.

When EMS is fully funded then maybe we will start to see some light at the end

of the tunnel.

Salvador Capuchino Jr

EMT-Paramedic

Re: Is the handwriting on the wall?

Only real solution is to increase pay for all levels in order to

encourage more quality people to enter EMS. Offer additional pay for

more ems related education. Over time this would lead to more

education required even for entry level jobs in EMS. Thus we would see

better educated EMS professionals. How do we expect to attract quality

people when the hamburger flipper with no education is paid as good or

better than EMS people?

Fire and EMS should be seperate. Enough said.

[Guest guest]

Wes,

I will jump in here...you know why the county will spend $110K on a new

bulldozer but not fund EMS???? It is because everyone drives on the roads to get

to work and back home...and hitting potholes will generate a call to the

Commissioner of that district...or maybe even the judge...but only a VERY small

portion of the citizens will use EMS and from that....even a smaller % will have

a bad experience that causes them to call and complain to their

commissioner...so, if you hear 300 phone calls about roads and 1 phone call

about poor EMS....where are you putting the dollars????

We (EMS People) are to blame for this because we continue to allow it to

happen.? How many people on here are from small and/or rural services that don't

know how they are going to fill the diesel tank next week let alone how to pay

an employee or supply health insurance?? Yet we keep pushing as far and as fast

as we can, REFUSING to let it fail, because that is not what we are

about...because if we fail people die!!!! (wow feel like Jack Nicholson

there)...so we keep pulling miracles out of different orifices of our

body....and we keep the citizens happy.? We explain away bad performance with

little excuses here and there...and because people don't use us daily, they

don't know any better....? And rarely (although I do know of one EMS leader who

did this) do the leaders make a stand or start to share the real truth...because

in the Maslow hierarchy of needs...we gotta have a roof and food....but since we

have lived so long on a pittance, we are in no position to take the financial

hit of losing our job...so....we keep pulling miracles...

Sometimes we are our own worst enemy!

Dudley

Re: Is the handwriting on the wall?

Sounds like the city is getting off cheap for only 1.3 million and another 3.6

million for paying fire department medics to fill the gap. Real cheap. Just

imagine if they did it their self.

Henry

Is the handwriting on the wall?

Fort Worth fire crews to cover gaps

By ANTHONY SPANGLER

Star-Telegram Staff Writer

FORT WORTH -- The city plans to spend $10,000 a day for off-duty

firefighters to answer the most serious emergency calls because ambulance

provider MedStar is failing to respond to calls in time, officials said

Monday.

Temporary crews are necessary, according to city documents, because of

MedStar staffing shortages and increased calls for service that have led to

extended response times citywide.

" We're going to do it for at least 10 days or as many as 30 days, " Assistant

City Manager Joe Paniagua said Monday. " There's no doubt that the tremendous

growth of the city has had an impact on this. "

MedStar's contract requires its crews to respond to 90 percent of Priority 1

calls -- emergencies with the most serious injuries -- within nine minutes.

MedStar has not met that goal in more than a year. Last month, ambulances

reached 79.3 percent of Priority 1 calls within nine minutes.

" For the first time in a long time, [MedStar] showed several calls that

exceeded the nine-minute goal, with about nine calls that were in excess of

20 minutes, " Paniagua said. " That's what precipitated us getting involved. "

The City Council has called an emergency meeting for today to discuss the

ambulance service and long response times.

An old problem

MedStar ambulance crews have had problems meeting response-time goals for

years. Last year, the Area Metropolitan Ambulance Authority, which operates

MedStar, ended its third-party contract with Rural-Metro and took over the

service.

Under the former system, MedStar could levy fines when goals were not met.

" Since MedStar has taken over the service, it is up in the air whether

MedStar can impose fines against itself, " Paniagua said. " Short of

terminating the contract, there isn't much we can do. "

The city, which pays MedStar about $1.3 million annually, can terminate the

contract at any time. But Paniagua stressed that Fort Worth has no intention

of pulling out.

Instead, the city plans to pay firefighters who are trained as paramedics or

emergency medical technicians, or EMTs, to work overtime until MedStar can

staff its ambulances properly.

Firefighters -- one paramedic and one EMT -- will staff six brush trucks

from stations 12, 17, 23, 24, 36 and 37. The crews will work during their 48

hours of downtime between regular shifts, said Fire Chief Rudy .

" These firefighters are working on their off time, " he said.

Firefighters have already been affected by MedStar staffing shortages

because they are often the first responders to emergencies.

" We're not going to drive away and leave a patient, " said Lt. Kent Worley, a

Fort Worth Fire Department spokesman. " We won't clear a scene until the

medical portion of the call is cleared. So if an ambulance hasn't arrived,

our fire crew is stuck on that call. "

MedStar shortages

MedStar needs 77 paramedics and 77 EMTs to staff ambulances that serve 15

cities in the Metroplex, including Fort Worth, said MedStar Executive

Director Jack Eades. It is short 16 paramedics and 22 EMTs, he said.

Two training classes will bring MedStar to full strength for EMTs by late

October, but it will still be short three paramedics, Eades said.

" A shortage of paramedics and EMTs is a national problem, " he said.

Starting pay is $25,618 for EMTs with no experience and $37,357 for

paramedics with no experience.

During recent budget discussions, council members acknowledged that building

infrastructure and providing emergency service is lagging behind the city's

growth.

Councilman Danny Scarth, the city representative to the ambulance authority,

said MedStar is meeting goals in most cases.

" There is no doubt they are understaffed, " he said. " It is certainly better

than it was a few years ago when they had a private contractor that was

handling everything.

" But there have been some isolated incidents where the calls have been

longer than the goal of nine minutes. "

E. Bledsoe, DO, FACEP

Midlothian, Texas

[Guest guest]

Yea, the handwriting is there. Hell, it's been there for a couple of

years. I'm surprised it took this long. I have friends there and

they're talented professionals. My fear is that it is perhaps too

much of a hill to climb. I'll keep an eye on things from here in

Missouri, thanks for the update Doc.

Regards to all,

J. Reeves

Freeman Occumed & Galena (KS) FD

(formerly w/ CareFlite & EVFD)

>

> Fort Worth fire crews to cover gaps

>

> By ANTHONY SPANGLER

>

> Star-Telegram Staff Writer

>

> FORT WORTH -- The city plans to spend $10,000 a day for off-duty

> firefighters to answer the most serious emergency calls because

ambulance

> provider MedStar is failing to respond to calls in time, officials

said

> Monday.

>

> Temporary crews are necessary, according to city documents, because

of

> MedStar staffing shortages and increased calls for service that

have led to

> extended response times citywide.

>

> " We're going to do it for at least 10 days or as many as 30 days, "

Assistant

> City Manager Joe Paniagua said Monday. " There's no doubt that the

tremendous

> growth of the city has had an impact on this. "

>

> MedStar's contract requires its crews to respond to 90 percent of

Priority 1

> calls -- emergencies with the most serious injuries -- within nine

minutes.

>

> MedStar has not met that goal in more than a year. Last month,

ambulances

> reached 79.3 percent of Priority 1 calls within nine minutes.

>

> " For the first time in a long time, [MedStar] showed several calls

that

> exceeded the nine-minute goal, with about nine calls that were in

excess of

> 20 minutes, " Paniagua said. " That's what precipitated us getting

involved. "

>

> The City Council has called an emergency meeting for today to

discuss the

> ambulance service and long response times.

>

> An old problem

>

> MedStar ambulance crews have had problems meeting response-time

goals for

> years. Last year, the Area Metropolitan Ambulance Authority, which

operates

> MedStar, ended its third-party contract with Rural-Metro and took

over the

> service.

>

> Under the former system, MedStar could levy fines when goals were

not met.

>

> " Since MedStar has taken over the service, it is up in the air

whether

> MedStar can impose fines against itself, " Paniagua said. " Short of

> terminating the contract, there isn't much we can do. "

>

> The city, which pays MedStar about $1.3 million annually, can

terminate the

> contract at any time. But Paniagua stressed that Fort Worth has no

intention

> of pulling out.

>

> Instead, the city plans to pay firefighters who are trained as

paramedics or

> emergency medical technicians, or EMTs, to work overtime until

MedStar can

> staff its ambulances properly.

>

> Firefighters -- one paramedic and one EMT -- will staff six brush

trucks

> from stations 12, 17, 23, 24, 36 and 37. The crews will work during

their 48

> hours of downtime between regular shifts, said Fire Chief Rudy

.

>

> " These firefighters are working on their off time, " he said.

>

> Firefighters have already been affected by MedStar staffing

shortages

> because they are often the first responders to emergencies.

>

> " We're not going to drive away and leave a patient, " said Lt. Kent

Worley, a

> Fort Worth Fire Department spokesman. " We won't clear a scene until

the

> medical portion of the call is cleared. So if an ambulance hasn't

arrived,

> our fire crew is stuck on that call. "

>

> MedStar shortages

>

> MedStar needs 77 paramedics and 77 EMTs to staff ambulances that

serve 15

> cities in the Metroplex, including Fort Worth, said MedStar

Executive

> Director Jack Eades. It is short 16 paramedics and 22 EMTs, he said.

>

> Two training classes will bring MedStar to full strength for EMTs

by late

> October, but it will still be short three paramedics, Eades said.

>

> " A shortage of paramedics and EMTs is a national problem, " he said.

>

> Starting pay is $25,618 for EMTs with no experience and $37,357 for

> paramedics with no experience.

>

> During recent budget discussions, council members acknowledged that

building

> infrastructure and providing emergency service is lagging behind

the city's

> growth.

>

> Councilman Danny Scarth, the city representative to the ambulance

authority,

> said MedStar is meeting goals in most cases.

>

> " There is no doubt they are understaffed, " he said. " It is

certainly better

> than it was a few years ago when they had a private contractor that

was

> handling everything.

>

> " But there have been some isolated incidents where the calls have

been

> longer than the goal of nine minutes. "

>

>

>

>

>

> E. Bledsoe, DO, FACEP

>

> Midlothian, Texas

>

>

>

>

>

>