South Central Wyoming Emergency Medical Service (SCWEMS) Joint Powers Board underwent a Board member shift at the July 8 meeting. Roy Barber, At-Large representative and chair of the board, has resigned. Ken Drain has taken his place as chair, and they will be looking for a new At-Large representative.
Director Heidi Sifford brought up that if the state has extra funds, money will be used for infant straps to care for pediatric patients. Training would subsequently take place so that all emergency medical staff will be able to adapt to the change safely. Previously, pediatric patients were transported in car seats. A new triage system with barcodes on bands and straps in order to keep families and patients together will be implemented in the ambulances. Sifford also mentioned that the State of Wyoming has provided an automatic CPR machine that will be distributed to the region at no cost to the Board. Sifford distributed information about courses that members of staff can take at the upcoming trauma conference.
Sifford has brought it to the attention of the board that she hopes to enact dispatch protocols for Saratoga, because as of right now there is not a standard for contacting crews. She hopes to make it standard for dispatchers to page another unit ten minutes after contacting an initial unit that is unresponsive.
Drain insisted that stand-by procedure should have, in writing, that the bylaw says “health over rodeo,” in that if the crew on stand-by at an event like the mud drives or rodeo is called out, they have to go to that call. The board determined that it needs to be made clear in responding to requests for stand-by, it must be clear that the job is not paid and it is a volunteering of time. If a paid call comes up during the time of stand-by, the crew must prioritize the paid call. The Board stressed that they will try to have a second crew come to the stand-by job in those instances, and they are looking into leaving a trauma pack with necessary gear for at least one medic to stay with at stand-by events when the ambulance must leave.
All Board members agreed that the Saratoga/Encampment area lacks communication between the stations. The North Side does much better with regards to communication between crews and stations in order to provide timely, effective responses to calls. In order for patient care to be delivered in the best, most efficient ways possible, Saratoga and Encampment have to regularly communicate their whereabouts. However, the Board noted that communication between station managers has been improving in the past week, with station managers coordinating with one another.
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