UTFFEMT
09-09-2004, 01:56 PM
EMT license approved for North Fork Fire Department
Justin Hill DAILY HERALD
Last fall, a Mapleton man and his wife were riding on a motorcycle through Provo Canyon just above the Sundance turnoff when the motorbike drifted into oncoming traffic and collided head on with a car.
The North Fork Fire Department, which covers Sundance, Aspen Grove, South Fork and from Bridal Veil Falls to the Utah-Wasatch county line, was the first to arrive on scene, getting there 10 minutes after it was dispatched to the accident.
The department's medical personnel helped the couple the best they could but were unable to start an IV or administer any drugs because of their level of training.
The couple died.
"It was pretty frustrating not to be able to provide additional care," said Kenny Johnson, public safety manager for the North Fork Fire Department.
Had the department's medical personnel been able to do those things, it probably wouldn't have made a difference, he said. But they would have been able to do something.
Now, however, they can provide more care. On Wednesday, the state Bureau of Emergency Medical Services approved the department's license to provide EMT-Intermediate ambulance transport service.
Now, the department can do advanced airways such as a procedure in which a tube is placed down the patient's throat and intravenous access with certain medications.
Before the license was approved, however, the department could only handle very minor incidents. They couldn't provide intravenous access or advanced airways.
Those calls were handled by Provo's paramedics, whose response time to North Fork Fire Department's area is around 25 to 30 minutes, depending on the weather, Johnson said. His department's response time is typically 5 to 8 minutes -- 12 minutes at the most to some areas, he said.
The department's upgraded license means increased safety and better patient care to residents and visitors in the area, Johnson said.
Provo Deputy Fire Chief Tom Kuhlmann said the change should improve the response times to people in the area. His department provides paramedic service, a higher level of service than EMT-Intermediate, from the Murdock Diversion to the Utah-Wasatch county line and up past Sundance.
The department will still need to assist North Fork Fire Department in some cases.
However, "potentially, it means we would have to go up there less than we do now," Kuhlmann said.
Justin Hill DAILY HERALD
Last fall, a Mapleton man and his wife were riding on a motorcycle through Provo Canyon just above the Sundance turnoff when the motorbike drifted into oncoming traffic and collided head on with a car.
The North Fork Fire Department, which covers Sundance, Aspen Grove, South Fork and from Bridal Veil Falls to the Utah-Wasatch county line, was the first to arrive on scene, getting there 10 minutes after it was dispatched to the accident.
The department's medical personnel helped the couple the best they could but were unable to start an IV or administer any drugs because of their level of training.
The couple died.
"It was pretty frustrating not to be able to provide additional care," said Kenny Johnson, public safety manager for the North Fork Fire Department.
Had the department's medical personnel been able to do those things, it probably wouldn't have made a difference, he said. But they would have been able to do something.
Now, however, they can provide more care. On Wednesday, the state Bureau of Emergency Medical Services approved the department's license to provide EMT-Intermediate ambulance transport service.
Now, the department can do advanced airways such as a procedure in which a tube is placed down the patient's throat and intravenous access with certain medications.
Before the license was approved, however, the department could only handle very minor incidents. They couldn't provide intravenous access or advanced airways.
Those calls were handled by Provo's paramedics, whose response time to North Fork Fire Department's area is around 25 to 30 minutes, depending on the weather, Johnson said. His department's response time is typically 5 to 8 minutes -- 12 minutes at the most to some areas, he said.
The department's upgraded license means increased safety and better patient care to residents and visitors in the area, Johnson said.
Provo Deputy Fire Chief Tom Kuhlmann said the change should improve the response times to people in the area. His department provides paramedic service, a higher level of service than EMT-Intermediate, from the Murdock Diversion to the Utah-Wasatch county line and up past Sundance.
The department will still need to assist North Fork Fire Department in some cases.
However, "potentially, it means we would have to go up there less than we do now," Kuhlmann said.