Rural Vermont PD First to Provide Police-based ALS in VT

[firedude 985]

It's Great news for the Winhall, VT Area. Winhall Police and Rescue Department is the first PD in Vermont to provide ALSFR. Very Unique and very different from Westchester.

Press Release

Winhall Police & Rescue Dept. Provides Paramedic Service

Due to the rural setting of Winhall and Stratton, access to high level emergency medical care in a timely manner has always been an obstacle. The Town of Winhall, Vermont has helped overcome that obstacle by instituting a paramedic level first responder program through its Police and Rescue Department.

Winhall Police and Rescue has recently upgraded their service to include paramedics, the highest possible level of pre-hospital medical service. Winhall currently has two volunteer paramedics that are members of our volunteer rescue squad. Winhall Police & Rescue expects one of its per-diem officers to obtain his paramedic licensing within the coming year. According to Winhall Police & Rescue’s EMS Coordinator, Officer Greg Gould, the project to upgrade to the paramedic level took approximately two years. During that time our department worked on meeting all the state requirements needed to obtain a paramedic level of service. An example of the equipment required to perform at that level include a twelve lead heart monitor, which can give critical insight as to exactly what the malfunction is during a cardiac emergency. Additionally, the paramedics can also perform some advanced maneuvers with the twelve lead monitor like pacing a patient’s heart. There is a long list of medications that paramedics are trained and licensed to administer. For example, paramedics can administer medication that will stop an active seizure, they can provide more advanced medications for cardiac patients and they can also administer pain control for patients that require it.

The Winhall Police Department requires that all of its full time police officers acquire and maintain at a minimum, EMT (Emergency Medical Technician) certification. The average response time for Winhall Police & Rescue to a medical emergency within Winhall and the Stratton Mountain Community is approximately 6 minutes. The Winhall Police & Rescue Department also includes a volunteer division which currently has eight volunteer EMTs. The volunteers live nearby and respond to medical emergencies. Gould describes these volunteers as very high quality medical providers whose service and enthusiasm are invaluable to the Town of Winhall and Stratton Mountain area. Winhall Police and Rescue continues to work closely with the Londonderry, Manchester and Stratton Mountain ambulance services. These highly trained and skilled ambulance service professionals continue to provide a high level of pre-hospital patient care from the original scene to the hospital.

Winhall Police & Rescue is now one of only three licensed paramedic level first response squads in the State of Vermont. In 2002 the Winhall Police Department became the one of a handful of police departments in the country to operate a dual service department by providing both police and ems services. Winhall Police & Rescue has taken some very innovative steps to bring the highest quality medical care in a timely manner to the residents of Winhall and Stratton Mountain. Winhall Police & Rescue Chief Jeffery Whitesell said he views EMS as an important role in our service to the community!

Press Release From the Winhall Police and Rescue Dept. Facebook Page

Edited July 5, 2012 by firedude

[ny10570 745]

Not at all unique or different from Westchester. Greenburgh PD has been providing ALSFR and BLS ambulances for as long as I can remember.

[firedude 985]

Not at all unique or different from Westchester. Greenburgh PD has been providing ALSFR and BLS ambulances for as long as I can remember.

Forgot about greenburgh, but It's still not very popular around here, right? And isn't Greenburg have a seperate fly car for it's ALSFR. In Winhall, It's the police officers themselves that are doing the ALSFR, they don't have an Medic or EMT just for EMS, they do it all.

[Dinosaur 844]

Yonkers PD had ALSFR before they were called ALSFR. What is now the ESU was known as "e-rigs" and the ESU cops were all trained as paramedics and responded with the contract ambulance service. This was back in the 70's and 80's when paramedics were fairly new (at least in this area). I believe some of the Yonkers medics were in Jacobi's early medic classes and were in the first medic class at White Plains Hospital for sure.

Guilderland and other PD's up in the capital district have also been providing police-based ALSFR for years.

Though not that common, it is certainly not unprecedented.

[ny10570 745]

Forgot about greenburgh, but It's still not very popular around here, right? And isn't Greenburg have a seperate fly car for it's ALSFR. In Winhall, It's the police officers themselves that are doing the ALSFR, they don't have an Medic or EMT just for EMS, they do it all.

Greenburgh is even more progressive in their medics are dedicated to EMS. There is no chance they won't be available because they're on a car stop or other non-ems call. Their medics are also available 24/7. Whitehall has two and are hoping for a third that is available whenever they happen to be on duty? That's not really a service worth bragging about.

[SRS131EMTFF 471]

I certainly commend then on their actions but as soon as they bring it on line 24/7, then can guarantee the officer or member will be at the scene within national standards 90% of the time will I actually believe that they are truly providing ALSFR.

Additionally, much of the skills and procedures they discuss in this press release such as EKG, IV therapy and pain meds are covered in the current AEMT/EMT-I'03 cirriculum and are most likely practiced by the current members of WP&RS.

Furthermore, they are not one of three paramedic first response squads in Vermont (At least 4 exist in Chittenden County alone, (Way further north) Essex, Colchester, South Burlington and Charlotte) nor are they allowed as much freedom or skills as a NYS paramedic. A VT paramedic is about as useful as a NYS EMT-CC based on the latest round of district and state protocols.

Sadly VT is still in the 80s regarding much of its EMS seeing as only as of the past decade have we been phasing in Paramedics. And now that we are transitioning to the Mark King initiative, with national registry EMTs, AEMTs and Paramedics, sadly the mess it has created will stagnate VT EMS for another 5-10 years before the system is streamlined again.

[ronnie 2]

GREENBURGH Police were the first police department to employee police and dual train them as Paramedics. The program started in 1980 with 3 medics. Over the next 2 years an additional 6 medics were trained. The first 9 medics were trained at Albert Einstein school of medicine in the Bronx. Abbey Richmond ambulance service had level 3 emt and upgraded to level 4 around 1984. Yonkers PD trained police officers at White Plains hospital around that same time. Nassau County PD only had level 3 medics. I think Colonie N Y for awhile also received a federal grant in the early 1980. Today Greenburgh P D still employees police officer that are trained as medics along with civilian medics

[v85 212]

I believe Albany County Sheriff's Office also runs deputy/medics.