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New York City - Critical Shortage Of EMS Workers |
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Dozens of ailing people waited more than an hour for a response after dialing 911 last week. During one two-hour period on a sweltering afternoon, six calls were stacked up for more than an hour, and 12 were delayed more than 30 minutes, according to Emergency Medical Service dispatch records reviewed by The Post.
A shrinking work force strained to respond to a flood of about 15,000 calls over four days - the same amount the city of Boston averages in a month. On a normal working day, the city's 2,000 emergency medical technicians, paramedics and their supervisors get about 3,200 medical calls.
But last week demand spiked abruptly, going as high as 4,606 during one 24-hour period as temperatures sizzled. Eight people suffered heat-related deaths last week, the city medical examiner said. The sudden surge left dozens of calls queuing in EMS dispatch centers in The Bronx and Brooklyn. An overheated 65-year-old woman with high blood pressure waited nearly two hours for a crew.
Medics didn't reach a 37-year-old woman suffering from vomiting and stomach pains for an hour and 14 minutes.
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Read Comments (10) — Post Yours »
1
Jun 15, 2008 at 02:38 PM Anonymous Says:
Appreciate Hatzalah
2
Jun 15, 2008 at 02:49 PM Anonymous Says:
HERES A NOVEL IDEA, ADMIT YOU CANT HANDLE THE JOB AND ASK FOR HELP.OR EVEN BETTER PRIVATIZE IT COMPLEETELY AND THAN WE CAN HOLD SOMEONE ACCOUNTABLE, UNLIKE NOW WHERE NO ONE IS ACCOUNTABLE
3
Jun 15, 2008 at 02:58 PM Anonymous Says:
This is due to their insane policy of forcibly taking any child or senior to the hospital even if 911 was called accidentally or for a small cut or bruise.
4
Jun 15, 2008 at 06:59 PM What a concept! Says:
Maybe they should subcontract with private ambulances (some cities do it with local hatzola) for calls they cant handle.
5
Jun 15, 2008 at 07:51 PM Anonymous Says:
One simple reason, they pay NOTHING. Pay a normal wage and people will jump at the job.
6
Jun 15, 2008 at 10:33 PM Anon1 Says:
An EMT make 23000 a year. If we can't pay more than that for the people who save lives, then we deserve to wait an hour and a half!!
7
Jun 16, 2008 at 12:08 AM Anonymous Says:
For the woman with stomach pains and vomiting. She should go take a cab.
8
Jun 16, 2008 at 10:04 AM avi Says:
anon 12:08 - you are a fool - how do you know whether or not person was suffering from heat stroke, diverticulitis, or a host of other things?
9
Jun 17, 2008 at 12:07 AM Anonymous Says:
the 911 operator can find out by asking.
10
Jun 19, 2008 at 09:16 AM firemedic Says:
The worst thing to happen to EMS was to consolidate them into the fire dept. I believe in fire based EMS if its don right but this was wrong from the begining. EMS is treated like the bastard child of the Fire Department and are payed like that to. They deserve better pay and better working conditions. Its time to put EMS back into a seperate municipal 3rd service.