Title
Emergency Medical Services, a division of the Chief Administrative Office, recommending the Board provide conceptual approval, pursuant to Board Policy A-3, to amend County Ordinance Code Chapter 8.74 County Emergency Medical Service and Medical Transportation to allow for non-emergency interfacility transports (IFTs) to be staffed at the level of service determined by the physician responsible for the patient when an IFT is required.
FUNDING: N/A
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DISCUSSION / BACKGROUND
The County has established an emergency medical services program in accordance with California Health and Safety Code and has adopted Chapter 8.74 - County Emergency Medical Service and Medical Transportation, as a framework for the integrated operation of a local emergency and non-emergency medical services and medical transportation system in the County. The County's Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Agency, housed in the Chief Administrative Office, is the local regulatory body for EMS within the County, pursuant to the State EMS Act. The EMS Ordinance establishes exclusive operating areas, standards and requirements for emergency and non-emergency medical services including personnel and training, equipment and supplies, response times, communications, and medical transportation.
The County EMS Agency regulates emergency and non-emergency ambulance and medical transport services, which includes the provision of non-emergency interfacility transports. A non-emergency interfacility transport (IFT) occurs when a physician at a facility has determined that a patient needs care at another facility and does not need emergency transport. Non-emergency IFTs can strain the EMS system as they can require long transports that may not require advanced life support (ALS) services. ALS means special services designed to provide definitive pre-hospital emergency medical care administered by authorized personnel under the direct supervision of a base hospital as part of a local EMS system. C...
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