FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
FORT
MYERS, Fla. (February 20, 2002) – An inspection this week of Lee County
Emergency Medical Services (EMS) by the State Bureau of EMS resulted in a
overall “excellent” rating of the Lee agency.
The inspection, on Monday, focused on a review of administrative service records, employee
certification files, departmental policies and procedures, ambulance/aircraft
inspections, medical equipment, minimum stocking levels and compliance with
State Statutes & Florida Administrative Codes.
The
inspector noted no deficiencies and Lee County EMS received an exceptional
rating.
“This
rating was obtained due to unprecedented teamwork by everyone involved with EMS,
strongly augmented by our partners in ancillary county departments and local
public safety agencies,” said Chris Hansen, EMS program manager.
The
written remarks from the inspector’s summary form included, “Very thorough
policy and procedures...Very organized personnel files...Excellent
(emphasis hers) vehicle maintenance records including on-board equipment...Great
staff...Overall an excellent inspection."
Lee County EMS celebrates its
30th Anniversary this month and from 1972 to 2002 the agency has
grown with our community. Today,
the agency has 25 ambulances and a helicopter, and more than 200 employees,
serving the residents and visitors of Lee County 24-hours-a-day.
These dedicated paramedics and
emergency medical technicians (EMTs) provide emergency care during more than
50,000 calls annually. In addition
to their 911 activities, EMS team members provide thousands of hours of
injury/illness prevention training through cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR)
and public access defibrillation classes, child-passenger safety seat
checkpoints, drowning prevention and disaster preparedness programs.
In addition, Lee EMS has been conducting a nationwide recruitment of paramedics and EMTs to fill open positions. In 2000, the Board of Lee County Commissioners authorized the purchase of four new ambulances and hiring of 34 new EMS employees to staff them in order to improve response time reliability. Last year, the Board authorized hiring an additional 43 EMS employees and the purchase of another five ambulances. In total, EMS will be opening seven new ambulance stations throughout the county this year.