Ambulance response times in Multnomah County have improved significantly over the past 10 days, according to American Medical Response, the county’s sole ambulance provider.
The company says it has hired 65 EMTs, in keeping with a settlement agreement it reached with Multnomah County over the summer after a years-long dispute over how to solve slow response times.
The settlement allowed AMR to reduce the number of ambulances it staffs with two paramedics, and to respond to some life-threatening 911 calls with a paramedic and a less trained EMT.
AMR rolled out a new schedule last week deploying the new EMTs, and is in the process of buying 12 new ambulances.
AMR officials say that since the new schedule went into effect on September 16, it has seen an 85.6% decrease in “level zero” events, that is, when no ambulance is available to respond to an urgent 911 call.
“We want the community to know that we are swiftly and effectively moving in the right direction, prioritizing faster, more efficient access to emergency care,” said Rob McDonald, regional director for AMR.
Local fire chiefs and some elected officials had long pushed the county to loosen the requirements in its contract with AMR, saying maintaining a two-paramedic standard was no longer possible given a national shortage of first responders.
Pressure grew on Multnomah County officials as evidence mounted this year that survival rates for key medical emergencies in the county had fallen as response times slowed.
The settlement requires AMR to continue to field at least 20 ambulances staffed with dual paramedics — about half the number it had on the road before. And it is continuing a pilot program, requested by the county, that uses ambulances staffed with EMTs only to respond to the least urgent calls.
A county spokesperson says they’re encouraged by the news of new hires, but it’s too soon to tell definitively if response times have improved.
AMR has until November 1 to come into compliance with the county’s staffing and response time targets. If it does, the county will waive some of the roughly $7 million in fines it levied against the company last year.
Paramedics in the county are represented by Teamsters Local 223.
The union applauded the increase in available ambulances. But burnout remains a serious problem, and first responders in Multnomah County are still being held past the end of their shifts, says Austin de Paolo, secretary-treasurer of Local 223.
“Simply adding more vehicles to the fleet does not guarantee better service if the workers staffing them are pushed to their limits or lack the necessary support,” de Paolo said.
Turnover is an ongoing issue for the industry nationally, with more than a third of new hires leaving within their first year, according to the American Ambulance Association.
As part of the settlement, AMR is making investments in training and retention in exchange for reductions in its fines. The company says it has sponsored 64 EMTs to attend paramedic training and has hired 15 community members who are being paid while they complete their EMT training.