Lisbon-Mount Vernon Ambulance Service is hoping to begin a hybrid staffing service for care. The presentation was made to the Lisbon City council at the Monday, Jan. 9, meeting, and a similar presentation will be made to the Mount Vernon City Council during budget requests.
Jacob Lindauer, LMVAS director, reiterated it is not intended to replace the volunteer ambulance service, but rather to continue the care that the ambulance service can provide in their schedule.
“We have 39 volunteer members currently, and we couldn’t be exploring this option without that good base of volunteers with our service,” Lindauer said. “This is to help us have a sustainable staffing of qualified paramedics.”
Lindauer said that emergency medical services can see a lot of peaks (high demand) and valleys (low demand) and that the hybrid staffing is a way to help the service make those times of increased services more like rolling hills.
“It’s a way to help our staffing not get into stressful situations and still maintain a terrific volunteer base,” Lindauer said.
The service would have rotations of three to four paramedics who would serve 12-hour shifts on and then 12-hours on call. After the 24-hour shift, they would have a rotation of time off until their next shifts would happen again.
On top of the staffing, it would also allow the LMVAS to reach out with programs to help the public know more how to respond in instances like cardiac events, strokes or diabetic issues, which would also increase the quality of care provided in the community.
Lindauer said that looking at a hybrid model of staffing is becoming needed, as the calls for service have increased for LMVAS. In 2017, the service had 452 calls. This past year, the service had 912 calls.
“That’s double the volume in just five years, and we don’t see those calls decreasing,” Lindauer said. “With the staffing crisis we’re seeing in other communities, we want to make sure we are continuing to allow our service to grow and maintain the excellent service we have been able to provide.”
The ask for Lisbon for the program was $10,000, and Mount Vernon’s would be slightly higher, with the LMVAS also paying a portion of the hybrid-service salaries.
Lindauer said he is looking for the program to hire three to four paramedics to serve in those part-time shifts and allow career focused medical staff have the ability to grow.
“We’ve had great support from Mount Vernon and Lisbon communities in the past, and this is a way to continue to provide the consistent medical care for our communities,” Lindauer said.
Other communities in the area are seeing staffing shortages that require mutual aid calls to other departments, a 25 to 30 minutes lay time.
Lindauer said that Mount Vernon and Lisbon are lucky to have more than 30 volunteers who want to be involved in the service.