Memo Fire Department Ambulance License
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To: Hopkins City Council
From: George Magdal, Fire Chief
Date: Wednesday, September 28, 1994
Subject: Fire Department Ambulance license and Medical Response
AMBULANCE
The state of Minnesota recently told us that we were in violation of their rules regarding
our ambulance license. They stated that to be a licensed ambulance we need to
response to all medical emergencies within our area. Currently, we only respond to life
threatening emergencies. We do not go to calls where patients only require
transportation or have minor injuries such as broken arms.
. This issue was discussed with the fire department officers. We found that there is no
reason for us to try to hold on to the ambulance license. The license itself places a
number of restrictions on how we do business. Surrendering our ambulance license
will not require us to change anything we are currently doing.
MEDICAL RESPONSE
A second and separate issue is, what medicals should the fire department respond to?
Originally the fire department was called only to medicals when the police department
requested it. In recent years we have responded to as many as 400 medicals annually.
This has caused a duplication of service. The fire department can often provide no
more service then the police officers.
We plan to change the response criteria to eliminate this duplication of service. The
new criteria has been reviewed by the fire department officers, the police department
and Hennepin County ambulance service. All parties agree that this change will not
reduce the level of service currently being enjoyed by our citizens. This change should
however have a cost benefit and help us to better manage our volunteer resources.
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. The new criteria would be as follows:
a Personal injury accidents - Dispatcher has confirmation of serious or multiple
personal injuries.
a All unconscious persons - Cardiac arrest, drowning, electrocution,
strangulation, etc.
a Serious Bleeding - Hemorrhage, severed limb, shooting, stabbing, etc.
a Any Extrication - Industrial, automobile, etc.
a Obstetrical - Birth imminent.
a Burning Injuries - Thermal or chemical.
a Back injury - Serious fall, patient cannot move, etc.
a HPD Request - Officers cannot respond, judgment of officer on scene or
dispatcher.
0 HCMC ambulance request - They may have more info than we do.
a Any HFD EMT on the scene of a medical and rescue has not been sent.
. Calls that would be eliminated where we duplicate services with the Police are:
a Difficulty breathing, possible heart, possible stroke where the patient is
conscious
a Broken bones with the absence of trauma
0 Minor personal injury accidents
a Early labor OB's
a A variety of minor medical occurrences.
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