HomeMy WebLinkAbout1976 05-25 Residents will vote on keeping paramedics DISPATCH k. ,45
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Tuesday,
l r� +•- May 25, 8976
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AOUBEN CHANCO the cities.of •St,Paul and Dµluth, certified by the state Board of as policemen, ambulances are first aid — oxygen, bandages equipment and training we had
Staff Writer both use firemen. Health.The paramedics work in out on patrol24 hours a day. and a quick trip to the:hospi- (before 1975): But today there
pairs, and on of two ambu- :The citizens are getting dual tal,"Cusick said. just happens to be better eyuip-
Maplewoodresidents will be lances is on duty per shift. service from one person and one However,in 1975 he said the went and training,and a differ-
asked next week to.decide if Maplewood p�¢WOOd "The other paramedics are on vehicle,"Cusick said. d e p a r t m e n b became.awaze ent approach to pre-hospital care
their city's paramedic program call and they have been'-called The Maplew od Police De- through the examples'in other. — delegating duties to parapro-
s will continue to_
in,all too many times,' Cusick partment transported city rest- cities,like St.Paul:that there is a fessionals that prevtously were
" exist. "TO OUR knowledge,we are said. dents to hospitals in station wa- better way of providing pre-hos- handled by physicians.
Voters will the only police department in He,emphasized that because gonsfrom19 6to1975: pitalmedtcalcare. CUSICK SAID that nationally
Tuesday,
the issue the Midwest with a paramedic theparamedics do double dutyWe provided a;minimum of We did all we could with'the See Resfdeats,Page 2
• a.
• t a referendum program;' said Cusick, who �
June pointed out .that Maplewood
• .1,to exceed the 'does not have a full-time fire
tax levy limita- department.
• t i o n by It takes the right kind of po :ave °�
$189,000, the !iceman, somebody who wants
• sum needed to to do it.There is no added pay &
€ ',- • . finance the pro- — ust more work."
Cusick gram. :Cusick-said the$189,000 sum �''
"We . are is needed to pay for salaries,
looking for. direction from the training,medical equipment And
citizens,if this program is what supplies, ambulance vehicles,
they want. We urge them. to and repair and,maihtepance of
vote,one way or the other,"Po- equipment.
lice Lt.Dennis S.Cusick„xuper- THE.PARAMEDIC-program, .
visor of the paramedic program, available only to residents of
said.during aniriterview. Maplewood,does charge$45 for
Approval of the referendum a run requiring use of meiica-
won t increase propertytaxes tion and$35 for other runs.
because the amount already is Cusick pointed out,:however, '
included in this year's 'taxes', 'that these fees are for transpor-
City Manager Michael Miller tationtothehospital. ,
said. "If'there is no.need to trans i
IF THE referendum is voted ort a he ho to the hos ins_ '” '. )` °�,' ?� Sh`" ^ y
p there P P Psi 1 }is Ivt, �1n 9' H xl4c �� S + s
would be rdown,next educed m$189xted long is anent to the matteatlthe Iow I rl,t ,,`'aRs a tt �d � Ali?"y G. ;; - • :� s, ,,,';.1.7', ';1.a
he said.Thus means that the tax scene ;'0,..4,,, ,1,14"0:',' _ ; , ' r
es on a home with a market vol- He said vehicles and supplies c+ ,,
es of $20,000,a with
for -example, _.are.expensive, and id supplies
hie- 1/41.3,y,,i „, ;_. a a `„ ,. wh�x t;," lt.,t � k`, Ai,�'
would be reduced by$9.62 for p ace equipment has to be re- r7 d# t� Y 3:1-�a t d t`E
the year. - aced. iridic - x r t tra I� �' a 4h� � ��f�'..��^ � 4 � xs .. .
Ma lewood citizens will be P"THE FEES;don't makeI� ` � i� �� � ' y r` ",";a �� ,�
g q P P Y g ,I ,,r'..,,,,,,":-„",,,t., ..-,...f..",'"..YZ, �` �`�.
voting on a uni ue ro am,one in a in for Lnsm, Cusick .r
that uses policemen as paramed said. y x \'6"".'''''"''''''',x
ics instead of firemen.The only' The program started in Au- -, Ff },:- x,
two other certified paramedic gust of last year with five par- *rkty TM r ft; 4 �
organizations in Minnesota, in amedics,and m started
aze;rune. ,•• �z S i f i y 1z
.r'..:., ,. �w --r �d' 7`€F"$7t, 3, rsSY,�' = 's',- aa.,
Policemen-paramedics Robert Vorwerk, left,and tient.Vorwerk shows how paramedics keep in direct
Dale Razskazoff demonstrate treatment of an emer- contact with doctors at St.Paul-Ramsey Hospital.—
gency,with Al Peloquin of the Maplewood City Hall Staff Photo by Sully Doroshow
building maintenance crew playing the part of a pa-
Residcnts
Continued from Page 1 increasing by 20 per cent a
month.
40 to 70 per cent of Americans T H E MAPLEWOOD par-
with heart problems die before amedics are trained for five-
reaching a medical facility, and and-a-half months by physicians
75 per cent of those die within and staff at St. Paul-Ramsey
the first.two hours after an at- Hospital under the direction of
tack. Dr. Brian Campion. After gradu-
"We decided 'a 1975 that if ation, they return for in-service
we could provide adequate ser- training averaging two days a
vice before transportation, we month.
might be able to save more lives Paramedic runs are monitored
and insure more rapid recov- through the coronary care unit
ery," he said. or the emergency room at St.
JANUARY of thisyear, Paul-Ramsey Hospital. The par-
AS OF
amedics have voice communica-
the Maplewood paramedic pro- tion with a physician and the
gram treated 335 patients. Of ability to transmit a patient's
that total, 104 had cardiac related electrocardiogram.
complaints requiring the train- If the referendum to finance
ing, skills and equipment of the the paramedic program fails
paramedic program,Cusick said. next week, Miller already has
Five of ten patients found in said the program will end.
full cardiac arrest or clinically "We would have to see if a
dead were resuscitated and now private firm can provide ambu-
have returned to normal produc- lance s e r v i c e," Miller said,
tive lives,he added. pointing out that an ambulance
service would not provide par-
Cusick said this 50 per cent amedics trained in lifesaving
record is better than the national techniques.
average of 10 to 15 per cent re- It will be a different story, of
suscitation of full cardiac arrest course,if the referendum passes.
victims. "Then we will have a par-
Police records also show that amedic program in this commu- 1
since January,the number of pa- nity for as long as we have the
tients treated by paramedics is community," Cusick said.