VTEMSD#3 Board Meeting Minutes for December 9, 2004

St. Michael’s College, Tarrant Center, Hall of Fame Room @ 1830

Light dinner served in observance of holidays.

 ATTENDANCE

INTRODUCTIONS (O’Neil)  

• Craig Butkus from Essex Rescue Squad

APPROVAL OF MINUTES (O’Neil)
 

• Corrections:
  • Licensing:  Board of Health, not VT Department of Health
  • Gouging, not gauging.
• Motion to accept minutes with corrections (Laskarzewski/Jones).

CORRESPONDENCE (O’Neil) 

• From VT EMS, today, regarding flu vaccination availability for EMS providers
  • to District Medical Advisors
  • to Licensed EMS organization Infection Control Officers
  • return information requested by Monday 12/13 to VT EMS Office

 TREASURY (McCarthy) 

• No report

 MEDICAL DIRECTION (Weimersheimer/James) 

• (Malone for James) Please hand in questionnaires.
  • Overview of selected facts for VTEMSD#3 compiled & distributed
  • Info was taken from copies of licenses from last year; copies of licenses from this year will be obtained from VTEMS
• (Weimersheimer) Question has arose, “If first responder applies AED, should that AED remain on the patient for the duration of the incident?”  Yes – and medical direction will be drafting a policy to clarify this.  (Longe)  What about PAD?  (Weimersheimer) Will address.  (Webb)  PAD users are required by VDH to review with local ambulance their choice of PAD.  (Brent) What if transporting service is not familiar with first response’s unit?  (Weimersheimer)  First responder initiating defibrillation should ride in with patient.  (Brent) Then, what happens if the service area is left uncovered?  (Phelps)  In VTEMSD#7, if ambulance uses first response’s AED, transporting service’s AED is left on scene with remaining EMS providers for coverage.  (Weimersheimer)  I will review the current policy and make revisions/updates.
• (Weimersheimer) The issue of Lamoille Ambulance Service responding to 911 calls has been raised.  If LAS arrives at scene (i.e. nursing home) and the patient is identified as high priority, it seems to be a delay of care to have LAS call 911.  James/Weimersheimer will be working with nursing homes to help educate them on the appropriate use of EMS.  (O’Neill) From FAHC – transport call initiated to LAS, not available so 911 was called.  Inquiry brought to State EMS was redirected to the District level.  Who monitors the number of calls turned over by services due to OOS or busy?  (Lindquist) SMR experiences the same thing with FAH calls.  LAS busy, FACT busy, so SMR called.  (O’Neil)  If this is a District issue, then how do we handle.  (Jones)  If they are out of service for personnel or equipment, then that is a District issue.  If they are on a call, then there is no malfeasance.  (Brent)  Can we examine the statistics and perhaps figure out if there are more calls than LAS can handle?  (Weimersheimer)  As a starting point, please document inappropriate utilization of emergent & transport services.  Medical direction needs better reporting of these incidents in order to respond.
• (Weimersheimer)  Recently the question was asked, “are separate State defibrillation & CombitubeÒ forms needed?  No.  Document all interventions on run form for entry into the District database at FAHC ED.  Hence forth….all info on separate forms should be entered into run form.
• (Ziter) Follow up to email regarding spinal immobilization curriculum?  Any updates from individual services performing the training?  (Goss) Questions still exist – at end of algorithm, during range of motion with assistance.  The patient should be moving his/her head through the moves, but the EMT-I should have a hand on their head guiding them.  If the patient complains of pain at any point, manually return the head to neutral position and initiate spinal immobilization.  (Longe) Questions/concerns about the wording of the policy regarding mechanism of injury.  Document first states that severe mechanism of injury mandates immobilization; and then states mechanism alone not a requirement for immobilization. (Weimersheimer) Medical direction will review.

FAHC (Helmken) 

• (Helmken) Early updates are important.  Please give early updates on high priority patients – even if the update is incomplete.  It is far better to know early that a high priority patient is coming to the ED than it is to receive a full update one minute out.
• Please bear with our construction.  Are there any issues?  Is equipment returning?  I’m happy to speak with anyone, anytime.  If something comes up, please make someone aware at the time of the event.  Speak with me, Kij, Karg, or the charge nurse so that we can manage any problems in a timely fashion.  Thanks for your great work.
• (Putnam) We no longer able to download cardiac arrest info on the PC in the radio room.  Will that be fixed?  (Helmken) I will ask Kij about that.  (Danaher) There have been problems with the software.

 TRAINING (Ziter) 

• Committee members include all training officers, course coordinators
• Update on current courses
  • EMT-I on holiday
  • EMT-B Tuesdays – beginning observations
  • EMT-B Monday/Wednesday – 17 completed
  • EMT-Intermediate Transition Courses
    • 19 people on enrolled; 5 discussed at meeting
    • class closed
    • Conference class (more expensive) & April class remain
  • Modules – 7 passed recent exam.  Module 6 beginning Monday – contact Becca.
• Practical Exam this Wednesday 12/15:  1730 for evaluators, 1830 for students; EMT-B initial only at Rowell.
• (Lindquist) Any possibility of one semester EMT-I? (Ziter) We are discussing it.
• Course approvals/announcements
  • (Longe) Combitube class proposal:
    • Jan 10 & 12, 2005 from 1900-2200 at Essex Rescue, location is negotiable
  • (Webb/Pouliot) Request to approve First Responder/ECA Course
    • January 7^th – April 5^th 2005; $65; Tuesday nights at CCVFC.
    • Motion to approve course (Jones/Cole).  Motion carried.
• Spring ’05 recertification dates – plan accordingly!
  • March 21st (Monday) & 23^rd (Wednesday) – 1800 hrs Rowell 103
  • Evaluators class just before test dates
  • TO’s need to approve evaluators with one year experience as EMT-B
• Upcoming trainings opportunities
  • Tuesday January 11, 2005 @ 1900, Milton Emergency Services hosting “Communication with Hearing Impaired Patients” with Carry Darling, instructor at 911 center.  She is willing to come to services and give this training ($75).
  • Wednesday December 15, 2004 @ 0900, Colchester Rescue Squad hosting Kelly Cota, EMT-I RN “Poisonings”
• (Ziter) Universal course application in the works.

 RESOURCE MANAGEMENT (Adams) 

• Committee members are Darren Adams (Chair), Howard Rice, Al Barber, Karen Danaher, Mike Ackerlind, Chris Putnam and Pete Munsell.
• Next meeting:  Thursday January 13, 2005 @ 1730 - meet here.
• MCI/CCRPC (Dusha)
  • Homeland Security Training & Planning
    • Training exercise program will be limited to table top only
    • same as last month
    • Goal = 3 table top exercises:  southern, BTV/SBTV, norther
    • Evaluation under federal program requires more time to prepare.

  (Baron) If Grand Isle and South Hero are considered part of District #3, then they should be in the loop.  (Dusha) Will get info –

  • Inventory – need data.  If you provide info to Pat, we can obtain info from him.
  • Sample “special services capability by agency” spreadsheet circulated.

 ADMINISTRATION (Soons) 

• Committee members are Kate Soons (Chair), Peter Weimersheimer, Lee Jones, Chris McCarthy and Debbie Baron.  Spots open -
• Next meeting – January 13^, 2005 @ 1730 - meet here.

 PUBLIC INFORMATION (O'Neil)

• Committee members are Jason Ziter.  Spots open -
• Designate chair of committee (Ziter)
• (Ziter) EMS Week
  • State wants to know what services are involved with EMS Week.
  • Not going to U-Mall.
  • Going to marketplace
• Next meeting – with himself
   

Old Business (O’Neil)

• (O’Neil) Memorandum of Understanding for use of BFD MCI trailer.
• Nominating committee form in Feb, report in March, vote April, May is first meeting for new officers.

New Business (O’Neil)

• (Barber) State Communications Meeting survey of PD, FD, EMS and Public Works.  Rep will be here next month.  Phone number on survey.
• Commissioner of Public Safety:  objective is dispatch information, interoperability.  Commitment to legislature to address dispatch issues.
• (O’Neil) Marcus unable to be here – no info on grant status for District.
• (O’Neil) 12/27 Statewide grant meeting.
• (O’Neil) Fill out surveys. 

Motion to adjourn (Putnam/Cole) at 1928 hours.

Respectfully submitted,

Kate Soons, Clerk

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Last updated: January 03, 2005