022806 EMSCity of Virginia Beach
Department of EMS
Staffing and Deployment Briefing
Chief Bruce W. Edwards
February 28, 2006
1
EMS Staffing and Deployment
Factors
•Calls for Service
•Resources
•Achievements
•Future Considerations
2
EMS Calls for Service
Volume
37,000
36,000
35,922
35,000
34,611
Number of Calls 34,000
33,634
33,000
32,707
32,000
31,124
31,000
30,000
29,000
28,000
20012002200320042005
YEAR
3
EMS Calls for Service
Top 5 Call Types Dispatched
Unconscious
7%
10%
Illness
Cardiac
10%
47%
Injury/Fall
13%
Breathing Difficulty
13%
Other Types
4
EMS Calls for Service
By Patient Age
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
<2526-4546-6566+
5
EMS Calls for Service
Special Operations Incidents/Deployments
•Marine Rescue: 221
•Vehicle Entrapments:
229
•SWAT Medics: 197
•Bike Team: 38
•SAR Team: 4
6
EMS Calls for Service
Geographic Demand
7
Staffing and Deployment
Operating Philosophy
•Integrated system of First Response,
Advanced Life Support, Transport
•Citywide ambulance response
th
•Performance measured at the 90percentile
level (No averages reported)
8
EMS Resources:
Rescue Squad Personnel
•Our volunteer rescue squad system remains
strong
•Net decline in membership during 2003 &
2004
–Negative attention impacted morale
–Some transitioned to career positions
•Net increase in membership for 2005
9
EMS Resources:
Rescue Squad Personnel –Recruiting/Retention
•Volunteer retention
programs have raised
morale considerably.
•Expanded recruiting
programs are paying
off. (Orientation
enrollment up 64%)
10
EMS Resources:
Rescue Squad Personnel
Composition:
•69% patient care
providers
•19% administrative
•6% special operations
•6% training pipeline
11
EMS Resources:
Career Personnel
•4 Brigade Chiefs hired
in 2004
•24 Medics hired in
2004
•8 Medics hired in
2005
–ALS delivery
–Rescue squad
augmentation
–Weekday staffing
12
EMS Resources:
Ambulance Deployment
•Ambulance crews are scheduled under a
model which balances a number of factors:
–Geographic coverage
–High demand areas
–Areas with longer travel times
•Resources are adjusted in response to call
demands
13
Impact of ERS Enhancements
on Ambulance Response Times
While responding to 2,288 additional calls in 2005
(6.8% increase from 2003) EMS was still able to:
•Decrease citywide response times by 19.5%
•Decrease rural response times by 28.9%
Additional ambulance staffing led to shorter travel
times across the community.
14
Response Time Comparison
Demand vs. Ambulance Response Time
40
35.92
35
34.61
33.63
32.71
31.12
30
Demand & Response Time
25
21.75
21.25
21
20
18.5
17.5
15
10
5
0
20012002200320042005
Year
RESPONSE TIMECALLS (1000s)
15
Response Times
First Help and Ambulance
20
Travel Time
15
10
Overall Response
5
Time
0
First HelpAmbulanceAmbulance
(Pri 1)(Pri 1)(Pri 2)
16
EMS Staffing and Deployment
Technology Initiatives
•Automatic Vehicle
Locators (AVL)
•GPS Mapping
Systems
•Field Reporting
17
EMS Staffing and Deployment
Opportunities and Challenges
•Opportunities
–Princess Anne Commons Careplex
–Virginia Beach General Hospital Renovations
–Rapid Cardiac Intervention Project
•Challenges
–Increasing Call Demands
–Aging Population
–Road System Capacity
18
EMS Staffing and Deployment
On the Horizon
•New Medical Treatment Modalities
–American Heart Association Guidelines
–Advanced Airway Techniques
•Field supervisor force at maximum output
•Increased staff capacity required to meet
increasing demands of the future
19
Questions?
20