starting an ems service

[ffemtp671]

i'm in the process of starting an ems service for a industrial plant. i have no clue where to start. my plans are to have all my firefighters at an emt basic level with one paramedic per shift. what steps do i have to take to get started. we will be on site with an outside service coming in to transport our pts out. any advice or assistance would be greatly appreciated.

[mdtaylor]

Well the obvious steps would be, get a medical director and draft a set of standing orders, design a training program and policy for training, draft a set of Emergency Response Plans, then research your state laws for the different types of organizations there are, one of which you will most likely be required to register as. Possible a First Responder Organization and not an EMS provider. That is pretty much up to your state laws.

[Firemedic 61]

we will be on site with an outside service coming in to transport our pts out.

Why don't you ask them?

[ffemtp671]

the only problem with asking the area ems service is i work for them and plan on leaving them to take on this job. i dont want them to know that i'm leaving to take the job.

[JakeCWU]

Your county or State EMS office should be a good source of information and be able to point you in the right direction. If I may be so bold to ask, if you're not going to transport, why take on the liability of providing ALS service? Is it a significantly remote site? Based on your screen name I'm assuming you're a paramedic, do you have other paramedics that are outside trained/experienced to take on a job there or are you planning on training plant workers? Just curious.

[EMS914]

State and Region office of EMS is the place to go. They have all the regulations required. What state are you in? I know of facilities with this type of situation but they are solely a "first responder" service. Even though they have ALS licensed providers working for them they don't perform ALS skills because they are not the primary transporting units. Becoming a first responder service is much less in depth than an ALS transporting service. I can think of very few places that provide ALS that does not have a direct relationship with the EMS service. Either way you will also need a Medical Director for oversight.

Hope this helps..

[ffemtp671]

thanks for the input ill look into those sources a lil more. i live in louisiana. the site in semi remote. the nearest ambulance would be coming about 25-30 minutes away possibly if they arent busy. there is also a medical helicopter within about 10 mins flight time to the area. and yes to ur question i am a paramedic. and i have people that would be coming in that previously trained paramedics that would be on the fire service brigade. my plans is to have at least one paramedic on each shift with all the other firefighters being at a basic level. my thought process behind being an als provider is the long eta of a unit coming to the facility. now an option is that i could possiblywork out a contract with the surrounding service to provide medics for my shifts needed. and just have the rest of my firefighters trained to first responder level or basic level. any ideas for approaching an md to ask them to be a medical director. i have a couple in mind from our local hospitals but i'm not sure if they would bite on the idea.