TO: Mayor and Town Council Members
FROM: Jill Keimach, Town Manager
Deborah Robberson, Assistant Town Attorney
DATE: February 27, 2020
DEPARTMENT: Town Manager
Staff Contact Jill Keimach, Town Manager/Deborah Robberson, Assistant Town Attorney
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AGENDA TITLE:
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Discussion of Ambulance RFP
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SUMMARY STATEMENT:
On March 24, 2019 Town staff presented a number of questions to Council. The intent was to determine, with the upcoming expiration of the existing Paradise Valley ambulance contract with PMT, whether the Council desired to extend the existing contract or engage in a solicitation process. The Council directed staff to conduct a procurement.
That process led to a number of follow-up issues that exceeded the expertise of staff, and staff has consulted with both a local and national consultant to guide the structure of the proposed RFP. One is a local Emergency Medical Specialist and resident; the other is Matt Zavadsky, EMS Senior Associate with the Center for Public Safety Management, LLC, which provides public safety technical services for the International City/County Management Association (ICMA).
Most individuals assume that the faster an ambulance arrives at the scene, the better the patient outcome. In fact, there was one study in Seattle in 1979 that 'determined' that an 8-minute response time improved the chances of patients under cardiac arrest. More recent research indicates that other performance measures are also important for patient outcomes, rather than relying solely on an ambulance response time as a performance measure. Two studies that further discuss this issue are attached.
In general, response time should not be the SOLE performance criteria for 911 emergency ambulance service because:
* only 1-2% of EMS responses involve cardiac arrest so other performance measures should focus on the remaining 98% of the calls;
* the ambulance may be called after the first responders arrive and assess the s...
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