Aiken County EMS Pushing For Help From County Council
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Aiken County EMS Pushing For Help From County...
Emergency crews are looking for ways to hang on to their employees, in Aiken. Aiken County EMS officials say paramedics are hard to come by...and sometimes even tougher to keep. At EMS, things are...
Emergency crews are looking for ways to hang on to their employees, in Aiken. Aiken County EMS officials say paramedics are hard to come by…and sometimes even tougher to keep. At EMS, things are being done to try and combat this problem. At this point, they say they’re doing the best they can with what they have. But every other day, EMS leaders say they are “maxed out,“ meaning, all their ambulances are busy with other calls, and they don’t have a truck on stand-by in case another emergency happens. They need more trucks, and more people. WJBF News Channel 6’s Joy Howe has the story.
Aiken, SC—It’s a tough job…but somebody’s got to do it.
David Watson, Aiken County EMT: “I love it. I’ve been doing it volunteer since I was 16, so that’s at least 20 years.“
Nick Bianco, Emergency Services Director: “Paramedics are hard to come by, people are fighting for paramedics.“
Aiken County EMS has been training and turning out paramedics for years.
Watson: “Aiken County is a pride city, they do very well with taking care of everybody. For a lot of people, it’s not so much about the money, it’s because they want to help the community.“
The money isn’t why people stick around in this job, but officials agree it certainly helps keep paramedics.
Cindy Brazier, training officer: “We’ve lost some to other services, there’s other services in the state who have lower call volume and better pay.“
So, they are presenting a plan to the County Council. Suggestions include going to a 24/72-hour schedule. Paramedics would work a 24-hour shift, followed by 72 hours off.
Brazier: “If we can give a dream schedule, we might not be able to give the pay, but we give them the schedule they want, and it affords them more time with their family.“
Since amublances come up short every other day in Aiken County, they’re also checking into ways to put quick response vehicles on the road. That would free up their ambulances to get to critical calls faster…and give the proper training to newer, less experienced workers.
Bianco: “What I’m looking for is what makes a paramedic, the mentality of a paramedic, why they become…and make that an industry and make them grow within their right to the industry.“
Because saving lives is a calling…
Watson: “When I moved from up North, Aiken County helped take care of my father, before he passed, and I’m dedicating my time back to Aiken County.“
EMS officials will pass along these suggestions to the Assistant County Administrator, later this week, who will look over them, and present them to the Aiken County Council.
EMS officials say their first responsibility is to their citizens. All of these suggestions, they say, are to make sure you get an ambulance in a good amount of time.
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