It has kept firefighters, medics and EMTs from being available for the real medical emergencies. That same policy is essentially still in place today (with the recent addition of private EMS also responding as requested with DC’s ambulances and fire apparatus), but if DC Fire and EMS Chief Gregory Dean has his way this will soon change.Īs you will read below and see in this story by WRC-TV/NBC4 reporter Mark Segraves, Chief Dean thinks too much emergency equipment, both fire trucks and ambulances, is being sent on too many runs that clearly aren’t emergencies. Previously, suppression units were only sent on the highest priority EMS responses. And every call for service would get a response, even if it was for someone just needing a ride to the hospital for an appointment. From that point on the 911 center would dispatch an engine or truck company on all EMS calls, no matter how minor. The solution was a decision to no longer rely solely on the civilian EMS workers to get medical help to 911 callers.
At the same time, The Washington Post was writing editorials pushing Mayor Barry to do something about all of this. I was breaking many of those stories for Channel 9 and other reporters were doing it too. Click here to watch story from Mark SegravesĪbout 30-years-ago, former DC Mayor Marion Barry had enough of the stories about lost ambulance crews and other problems for EMS in the Nation’s Capital.
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