EMS COMMUNITY SUPPORTS FUNDING IN PROPOSED COUNTY BUDGET
October 05, 2016
Supervisor Robert Salov, 608.423.4358
County Board
Dane County Executive Parisi's 2017 budget submission to the Dane County Board includes full funding for a position in the Department of Emergency Management for a support position in the EMS Division. The work of the support position will help tremendously in continuing the incredibly important work of Dane County EMS to provide consistent, highly skilled and efficient emergency medical services to residents and visitors to Dane County. Dane County has grown a regional system that works closely to maintain consistent medical protocols, quality assurance and training. This consistency allows our system to achieve outstanding emergency medical care.
“This position will help all Dane County EMS Districts enhance the support and technical help of the EMS office to maintain and further evolve the regional provision of EMS services to the public" said Scott Allain, President of the Dane County EMS Association and director of Marshall EMS.
County Board Supervisor and Cambridge Area EMS Director Robert Salov states, "Having a full time support person in the EMS office will make sure that medical services and protocols as well as important medical data is processed efficiently and will be the basis for the highest level of treatment and emergent medical care available to the public. The addition of support services in the EMS office will continue the enhancement of our regional consistency and continuity of care to the public".
"The Madison Fire Department works very closely with Dane County Emergency Services (EMS) Office, within the office of Dane County Emergency Management, to provide the best care possible for not only City of Madison residents but for all residents within Dane County. The inclusion of additional staffing in County Executive Parisi's Executive Budget for this agency will help all EMS agencies within Dane County” said Laura Laurenzi, Assistant Chief, Madison Fire Dept.
Duane Erschen, Chief, Deer-Grove EMS said “This is excellent news, a long time coming! The funding of this position shows a measurable expression of support directly in proportion to the livelihood of Dane County EMS. This is the much needed backing that will strengthen the many efforts this department oversees and help assure the continued coordination from the Dane County level of ascendency. Kudos to Emergency Management Director Tubbs for following through with keeping this a budgetary priority and grateful expressions of appreciation to the Honorable Joe Parisi for recognizing the need to fund a branch of service which helps to facilitate lifesaving services to our communities”.
Jeff Dostalek, Deputy Chief, FitchRona EMS stated “I was excited to learn that funding for a fulltime position within the Emergency Management’s office has been included in County Executives Parisi’s budget. The position is long overdue in my opinion. I believe the work conducted by the EMS office is vital to EMS agencies in the County. I applaud the County Executive for recognizing the need for such a position”.
"As the compliance, educational and administrative requirements of running a volunteer EMS organization continue to increase, service directors and members sometimes don't have the resources or time available to them to efficiently meet these increasing demands. EMS's number one priority is for the patients who call for our help when they need medical attention. This position and the support of the Dane County EMS office allows us to keep our focus on our patients and deliver quality, efficient and timely care to them” said Kevin Weber, Director, Sauk Prairie Ambulance Association.
Jim Wick, Director, District One EMS said “Having access to a support staff, county medical director, and consistent protocol's that cover each level of care within Dane County's EMS Services, is extremely beneficial to all the EMS Responders within, both career and volunteer. This needed support, leads to better organization, consistency, and a better quality of patient care.“
“The position in the Dane County EMS Office will enhance every EMS Agency in Dane County through the added ability to efficiently process vast amounts of medical data county wide as well providing continued support through consistent medical protocols and training to ensure that the EMS System throughout the county is delivering the best care possible to our citizens in the most efficient manner. I would like to thank Executive Parisi for his continued support of the EMS system throughout the county and providing this much needed position to continue the enhancement of our regional consistency and continuity of care to the public” said Scott Russell, Director, Waunakee Area EMS.
"Having a full time support person in the EMS office will make sure that medical services and protocols as well as important medical data is processed efficiently and will be the basis for the highest level of treatment and emergent medical care available to the public. The addition of support services in the EMS office will continue the enhancement of our regional consistency and continuity of care to the public" said Craig Brinkmann, Chief, Mount Horeb Fire & EMS.
“The addition of a support service position within the EMS office cannot come soon enough. Having a position dedicated to maintaining various types of data, assisting the public over the telephone, and handling all variations of office duties, will enable the department to run that much more smoothly. This position will relieve the burden on other staff members” said Steve Lafeber, Chief, DeForest Area Fire & EMS.
"As 2017 approaches and the years ahead require more coordination and consistency between the EMS services in Dane County, the funding of a support position in the EMS section of County Emergency Management is critical to keeping our regional system strong and cohesive. The support services offered including protocols, medical direction, data collection, training and the many additional duties of the EMS section will strengthen our ability to provide the public with evidence based emergent medical services to Dane County citizens and visitors” said Glenn M. Linzmeier, Chief, Oregon Area Fire/EMS.
“As a new cooperative partner with Dane County EMS, I fully support the newly funded position outlined in Dane County Executive Parisi's 2017 Budget. This additional position will be of great impact to Dane County EMS in supporting the already outstanding staff. This position is imperative to the progressive nature of Dane County EMS in data acquisition, coordinating medical control, assisting in protocol development, review and deployment, and drafting the DCEMS newsletter, which as a new partner, we find very informative and helpful. The addition of this support position is integral to continue the efficient operations and the anticipated expansion of the evolution of regional provisions and support to the local EMS agencies that rely on the Dane County EMS office. I applaud the efforts and foresight of Executive Parisi to support this position for years to come” said Russell Schafer, Director Lodi Area EMS.
"I am happy to see the vacant support position in the Dane County Emergency Management Department, EMS office, included in the County Executive's 2017 Budget. Funding this vacant position in the proposed Dane County Budget will provide stability and continual development of the successful regional scope of the programs that Dane County EMS oversees” said David Bloom, Chief, Town of Madison Fire Department.
“During the decade I served as EMS Director in Stoughton, I was aware of the importance of, need for, and impact provided by Dane County EMS. Besides the day-to-day assistance with EMS issues, technical advancements and support, the EMS division has also provided a regional approach to integrating common policies, equipment and best practices. For that reason, I strongly support County Executive Parisi's inclusion in his budget for the full-time EMS support person” said Cathy Rigdon, Retired EMS Director, Stoughton Area EMS.
“The support position in the Department of Emergency Management is critical to continue the mission of EMS staff, enabling data driven performance improvements and the highest level of county wide standardized patient care” said Lisa Schimelpfenig, Director, Stoughton Area EMS.