The South Lorain County Ambulance District plans to reduce emergency response times by shifting from three-person crews to two-person crews.
District Board President Robert Holmes said crews will be able to respond 6 minutes faster by cutting part-time shifts, which respond from home. Instead, the district will be staffed with two employees that will be located in the station when the calls come in.
The move, scheduled for March 1, would result in the cut of 21 12-hour shifts per week.
Holmes told News 5 he understands why some part-time employees are upset about the cuts.
“But ultimately our concern is not the money of it, it’s the call and response time,” he said.
The district’s Medical Director, Dr. Kim Bowing, said the minutes that will be shaved off response times will help save lives.
“In the long run, it’s going to take care of the patients in this community at a better rate,” he said.
One of two supervisions can be utilized in the event that a second call is received. The Wellington Fire Department will also be dispatched to help with some of those calls.
Wellington Fire Chief Mike Wetherbee told News 5 that his department is more than willing to assist, but initially he was not sure if they could handle the added call volumes.
“We’ll do anything we can to help you out but we need to look at some numbers and come to determination on what it’s going to mean to the Fire District,” Wetherbee said. “What it’s going to mean to our budget, our finances and more importantly our people.”
Wetherbee said they will evaluate soon after the plan is put in place to make sure that things are running smoothly.
