SFD: Stockton Fire reduced to BLS EMS

A strip of black electrical tape covers the paramedic signage on the Company 9 Engine. Advanced life-saving equipment also was removed from trucks.
Photo credit:CRAIG SANDERS/The Record

Firefighters forced back to basics

Under supervision, Stockton personnel banned from advanced medical procedures

By Zachary K. Johnson

Record Staff Writer

September 02, 2010 12:00 AM

STOCKTON - On Wednesday morning, city firefighters started their day covering up the word "paramedic" on their engines and uniforms, and state investigators took up posts outside emergency rooms to make sure the Stockton Fire Department was sticking to basic life-saving techniques.

Firefighters were barred from administering the more-advanced procedures that authorized paramedics normally perform.

Because of a long-standing legal tussle between the city and San Joaquin County over emergency medical services, it was the first time since 1976 that Stockton paramedics haven't been a part of the city's response to medical emergencies.

City and county officials say they want an agreement to bring Fire Department paramedics back.

State and county officials said that the people of Stockton were safe Wednesday: firefighters provided basic emergency medical care and worked in tandem with paramedics arriving with responding ambulances. It's a model used in other California cities.

But there was one instance Wednesday that shows what was lost, according to Stockton Fire.

In that call, firefighters arrived at a scene before an ambulance, but the firefighters were barred from giving the patient medication because that falls under the advanced-life-support list of techniques.

According to the county, an ambulance was delayed to a call because Stockton provided incorrect information to dispatchers. It was unclear Wednesday if these two incidents were the same.

Investigators from the California Emergency Medical Services Authority stationed themselves in teams of two to interview ambulance crews outside emergency rooms to ensure Stockton was not violating state rules by operating paramedic services without an agreement, said June Iljana, deputy director of the state agency. But things ran smoothly, and the investigators wrapped up early, she said. "We've just seen great cooperation."

After the Stockton City Council decided to temporarily suspend paramedic services Tuesday, firefighters began removing advanced-life-support supplies before Wednesday's 7 a.m. deadline, Deputy Chief Paul Willette said. "We did what we had to do to comply."

Out in the field, it looked as if the private ambulance company contracting with the county had added more ambulances and paramedics than usual, he said. "It's almost like they had to make up for the paramedic units that are off the street today," he said.

Jason Sorrick, spokesman for American Medical Response, said Wednesdays typically have high numbers of calls, and many factors can influence the number of ambulances in the field.

County Emergency Medical Services Administrator Dan Burch said there were three additional ambulances in service in the Stockton area, "just in case."
Not just paramedics

In June, a judge ruled in favor with the county over a 2008 lawsuit over paramedic services. The City Council voted to appeal.

But the two-year dispute over paramedics is not just about paramedics. It's tied inextricably to an even older dispute between the city and county over emergency medical services, in particular about who handles 911 calls in medical emergencies.

In March 2009, a judge ruled in favor of San Joaquin County, saying Stockton should transfer emergency medical phone calls to a dispatch center run by a private company contracting with the county. A second part to that dispute - over whether the county breached a contract with the city - could still go to trial.

Both sides say they're eager to find a way to resolve a total of three emergency medical lawsuits.

City Hall still is hoping to get a settlement proposal to the county before the end of the month that would restore paramedic services and resolve the dispatch issue, Deputy City Manager Laurie Montes said.

As for dispatch, the city is willing to hand 911 calls over to the county so long as fire dispatchers can listen in on the calls in real time, in case there is a medical emergency that also requires fire response. "We believe that provides the safest model for our citizens."

But county officials said settlement proposals from the city earlier this summer tried to carve out unique terms for the city, separating it from the county-wide system.

Public safety wins when a system has uniform procedures that increase efficiency and effectiveness in response to medical emergencies, Burch said. Competing interests lead to confusion or disputes over jurisdiction, sometimes in the middle of an emergency, he said.

"If we just let everyone do what they think is right," he said. "That's not what's best for our citizens."

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Staff writer Daniel Thigpen contributed to this report.

Contact reporter Zachary K. Johnson at (209) 546-8258 or zjohnson@recordnet.com. Visit his blog at recordnet.com/johnsonblog.