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Contra Costa Emergency Medical Services > Latest News from the EMS Agency
Latest News from the EMS AgencyJune 2008July 2008 Prehospital Care Manual update summary (12k PDF, 1p.) May 2008STEMI News - Spring 2008 (206k PDF, 2pp.) The ambulance equipment list (373k PDF, 18pp) has been updated to include a reference to the State Personal Protective Equipment Guidelines (EMSA #216). This equipment is required for those providers that received equipment as part of the PPE grant and is optional for all other providers. February 2008
January 2008
November 2007
July 2007
January 2007
December 2006
November 2006
September 2006
June 2006
May 2006
March 2005
February 2005
Updates to Policy 2 - Paramedic Accreditation (24k PDF, 1p.) will eliminate the 5-call preaccreditation field evaluation for initial accreditation and the difficult airway/infrequent skills courses for maintaining accreditation. Paramedics will now be required to submit a completed skills verification form (24k PDF, 2pp.) every two years to maintain their County accreditation. November 2005
September 2005
July 2005
Policy 18, First Responder/EMT AED (31k PDF, 2 pp.) updated to include information for agencies wishing to implement EMT AED programs. EMT AED Service Provider application (31k PDF, 1p.) availiable. There are no changes to the requirements for First Responder Defibrillation Agencies. June 2005
June 28, 2005 - The Board of Supervisors has approved and authorized the Health Services
Director, or designee, to execute a contract with American Medical Response (AMR) to
provide ambulance services in accordance with specified rates for the period
July 1, 2005 through June 30, 2010, including an extension through June 30, 2014
subject to a Board finding that AMR is in compliance with contract requirements
and standards; and authorizing the Health Services Director, or designee, to
execute a one-month extension of the current contract with AMR in the event that
the proposed new contract cannot commence on July 1, 2005. March 2005
Check out the first issue of the EMS Newletter. This issue contains information about stroke care, policy and regulation updates and the date of the 2nd annual Prehospital Conference (September 21, 2005). February 2005
February 15, 2005 - Board of Supervisors approves American Medical Response to continue providing emergency ambulance service in Contra Costa County.
January 2005
- Policy 24 - Emergency Department Diversion and Unusual Event Notification - policy has been revised to limit diversion time to 90 minutes, require use of REDDINET for notification and remove requirement to fax diversion form.
December 2004
A preliminary recommendation in the ambulance service proposal process has been made. For more information, click here.
November 2004
Proposals for emergency ambulance service available. October 2004
New EMT-I, Paramedic, Continuing Education and EMS Quality Improvement regulations in effect. Regulations available on the California EMS Authority web site.
September 2004
The "Request for Proposals for Emergency Ambulance Service" is now available. The RFP schedule and other documents are also available on this page. August 2004
The 2003 EMS Annual Report (2,400kb PDF, 106pp.) is available. If you would like a hard copy sent to you, contact the EMS Agency. July 2004
Check out the information on Public Access Defibrillation (PAD) in Contra Costa County. Look for more news as the program develops. June 2004Effective July 1, 2004, the Contra Costa EMS fee structure will change. The fee for MICN authorization/reauthorization has been eliminated. The fee for EMT certification will be waived for persons employed by a fire service agency within Contra Costa County. May 2004Effective May 1, 2004, the Contra Costa EMS Agency now requires the National Registry of Emergency Medical Technicians (NREMT) written exam as the written portion of the certification exam. Additional information is available on this site or by contacting the EMS Agency. April 2004"Study of West County ED and Critical Care Access/Capacity Issues" by The Abaris Group available. February 2004Effective May 1, 2004, the Contra Costa EMS Agency will begin requiring the National Registry of Emergency Medical Technicians (NREMT) written exam as the written portion of our initial certification exam. We will continue to accept the final skills exam from approved training programs for the practical portion of the certification exam. [more information] January 2004Updated pages for Prehospital Care Manual (22k PDF, 2pp.) Maximum dose of IV morphine corrected for non-critical trauma patients. Max dose is 20mg IVP, not 10mg. October 2003
Check out the new emergency preparedness links
on our Links page September 2003Special meeting of the Emergency Medical Care Committee (EMCC) scheduled for October 15, 2003 at 2pm to discuss the consultant report. Final version of the consultant report on the Contra Costa County EMS System is now available. 2002 Annual Report (793k PDF, 102pp.) is now available. Contact the EMS Agency if you would like a hard copy. Public comment draft of consultant report on the Contra Costa County EMS System is now available. Special meeting of the Emergency Medical Care Committee (EMCC) scheduled for October 1, 2003 at 4pm to discuss the report. May 2003Consultant report on preliminary findings of EMS System design from Fitch & Associates available.
EMCC Executive Committee Meeting - May 14, 2003 - 4 - 5:30 p.m. - agenda (10k PDF, 1p.). April 2003Ruth Burk Joins Contra Costa EMS Staff The Contra Costa County EMS agency is pleased to announce the hiring of Ruth Burk as a new Quality Improvement Specialist. She has accepted a part-time contract position. Ruth earned her RN diploma in 1977 from Buffalo General Hospital School of Nursing, Buffalo, New York. Ruth is an experienced emergency department nurse with over 20 years acute care experience. For the past two and a half years she served as the Base Coordinator for John Muir Medical Center. As a Quality Improvement specialist for Contra Costa County EMS, Ruth's assignments will include quality improvement activities for the AED program as well as the EMS System. February 2003The Emergency Medical Care Committee (EMCC) has a new meeting location as of the March 12 meeting. The new location is at the Contra Costa County Schools Insurance Group, 550 Ellinwood Way, Pleasant Hill, CA 94523. map to the new location (34k PDF, 1p.) January 2003Here's the schedule of Difficult Airway/Infrequent Skills (9k PDF, 1p.) classes for 2003. October 2002Here are the Prehospital Care Manual updates (40k PDF, 12pp.) that are effective December 1, 2002. Dr. Barger has also prepared a summary of the changes (43k PDF, 4pp.). September 2002Policy 7 - County Paramedic Evaluator updated. Effective 9/1/02. August 2002Policy 5 - Prehospital Credential Review Process rewritten to eliminate redundancy with State requirements for due process. Effective 9/1/02. July 2002
Policy 15 - Hospital Guidelines For Interfacility Transfers Via Ambulance (48k PDF, 6pp.), revised to include
information on Critical Care Transport - Paramedic (CCTP) program. Effective 6/1/02. June 2002
Additional documentation for agencies wishing to participate in the
Paramedic Interfacility Transfer (CCT-P) program has been made available on-line. See Documents under CCT-P. April 2002
The EMS Agency has issued a Request for Proposal to Provide Consultant Services
Assisting in EMS System Design, Ambulance Provider Selection, and Ambulance Contracting Updates to Policy 3 - MICN Authorization and Re-Authorization and Policy 9 - Patient Destination Determination. January 2002Judy Smith Joins Contra Costa EMS StaffThe Contra Costa EMS Agency is pleased to announce the hiring of Judy Smith as a new Prehospital Care Coordinator/Trauma Coordinator. Judy earned her nursing degree at Canisius College in Buffalo, New York, where she trained at the Sisters of Charity Hospital. In 1989, she earned her bachelor's degree in health services administration at St. Mary's College in Moraga. Judy is an experienced emergency department nurse with over 20 years as an emergency nurse at Sutter Solano Medical Center. There she served as a paramedic liaison nurse, as an MICN, as a preceptor for paramedic interns, as a charge nurse, and as an ED director. Additionally, Judy has served part time for eight years as an advice nurse for the Contra Costa Health Plan. Judy has also served as an emergency nurse in the US Air Force. As Prehospital Care/Trauma Coordinator for Contra Costa EMS, Judy's assignments will include hospital liaison, quality improvement, and trauma system coordination. Barbara Center Assumes Fulltime Region II RDMHS DutiesUnder a State Regional Disaster Medical/Health Coordinator grant, Contra Costa County has provided disaster planning and coordination assistance to the 16-county Northern California Coastal Region (Region II) for a number of years. Barbara Center of the Contra Costa EMS staff has served as a part-time project coordinator and Regional Disaster Medical/Health Specialist in addition to her duties as Trauma Coordinator. Barbara has now assumed expanded regional disaster planning responsibilities as the fulltime Region II Disaster Medical/Health Specialist. In connection with her RDMHS duties, Barbara will continue to serve as the liaison to the Bay Area Disaster Medical Assistance Team (DMAT CA-6). Update to page 88 of the prehospital care manual (37k PDF, 1p.) - the criteria for use of Furosemide after base contact (#8) were incorrect on treatment guideline R4(Acute Pulmonary Edema). November 2001Update to page 44 of the prehospital care manual (13k PDF, 1p.) - the midazolam and morphine sulfate doses for sedation/pain relief were inadvertently left off under the external cardiac pacing step of treatment guideline C8 (Symptomatic Bradycardia). The complete prehospital care manual (440k PDF, 132pp.) is also available. new ambulance and ALS first responder equipment lists are now available. EFFECTIVE December 1, 2001 - EMT-I certifications will no longer be issued the same day the application is submitted. Assuming there are no issues with the documentation submitted with the application, cards will be mailed within 5-7 days. Also, documentation of AED (automated external defibrillator) training will be required beginning January 1, 2002 for both initial certifications and recertifications. October 2001
October 29, 2001 - Mt. Diablo Medical Center has closed their OB and neonatal services. September 2001Treatment Guideline And Procedure Update - Effective December 1, 2001Paramedic providers in Contra Costa County will implement the use of Combitube, also known as Esophageal/Tracheal Double Lumen Airway (ETDLA). Combitube will replace the Esophageal Obturator Airway (EOA), which has been used for many years as a backup device when endotracheal intubation cannot be successfully performed, yet advanced airway control is indicated. As well, paramedics will begin use of non-invasive cardiac pacing for patients with symptomatic bradycardia not responsive to atropine. The other significant treatment change will involve replacement of diazepam with midazolam for treatment of seizures and for sedation in cardioversion or cardiac pacing. BioTerrorism Conference in San Ramon on October 10, 2001. August 2001The Emergency Medical Care Committee (EMCC) will be meeting in the Sequoia 1 & 2 rooms at John Muir Medical Center on September 12, 2001. July 2001Check out the new trauma reporting format (32k PDF, 2pp.) Effective July 1, 2001 - updates to policy 9 (Patient Destination Determination), policy 15 (Hospital Guidelines For Interfacility Transfers Via Ambulance) and Policy 24 (Emergency Department Diversion And Unusual Event Notification). New policy 32 (28k PDF, 2pp.). Policy 9 - section IV - added "recommendations from a physician familiar with the patient's current condition" as another factor to consider when determining transport destinations. Policy 15 was rewritten to clarify transport options for interfacility transfers. See Dr. Bargers memo (39k PDF, 3pp.) on the changes to these policies. All references to multiple base hospitals were removed from policy 24. Policy 32 is a new policy outlining the reporting requirements and process for unusual prehospital occurrences. This policy was created to consolidate existing information from a variety of other documents. Policy 28 - Interfacility Paramedic Transfer Program has been deleted. April 2001Updated policy 3 - MICN Authorization and Re-Authorization, to no longer require ride-along time for MICN re-authorization. Need Help with PDF files?Viewing PDF files requires a free program called Adobe Acrobat Reader [download Acrobat]. If you do not wish to or cannot run Acrobat Reader, you may still view PDF files by using Adobe's [PDF to text conversion].
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