| EAST HAVEN — Fire Department officials and the union that represents town firefighters have reached a tentative agreement that could see the start of full-blown paramedic service by early May, officials said Tuesday. The town is now served by emergency medical technicians, or EMTs, who provide a narrower range of services. Fire Chief Wayne Sandford and union President May Lendroth both confirmed the tentative agreement. As a result of a prior agreement, however, neither would discuss details of it before the union votes Thursday night on whether to accept the agreement.
While Sandford declined to comment on the proposed agreement, he previously has said the department, which already has the necessary state license and much of the new equipment it would need, could be in a position to implement the service within a month of reaching any agreement.
He told the Town Council at a recent meeting that the Fire Department hoped to begin offering paramedic service by the beginning of May.
Mayor Joseph Maturo Jr., who has threatened to institute the paramedic service without an agreement if negotiations bog down, said the service "means a great deal to the people of East Haven. It’s probably the biggest life-saving endeavor that the town has started since EMTs have been introduced to fire departments."
He said the paramedic service "will allow us to do some additional life-saving techniques that can’t be administered by the EMTs."
Maturo previously has said upgraded emergency-response service "is important enough to the community that this issue be resolved and service to the public be implemented as soon as possible."
Nine of East Haven’s 40 paid firefighters already are certified paramedics. But until a union agreement is in place and service formally begins, they are prohibited from doing everything they are trained to do in an emergency.
EMTs, unlike paramedics, can’t administer any drugs and, when using a cardiac defibrillator, must use "automatic" settings, Sandford has said.
Paramedics can administer certain medications, including drugs that can reduce the amount of damage from a heart attack while en route to the hospital. They often are in contact with hospital doctors while working on a patient in the ambulance, Sandford said.
One issue firefighters are pushing for is additional staffing so that, when a paramedic is administering treatment, their firefighting shift does not have to operate shorthanded, a Fire Department source said.
Mark Zaretsky can be reached at mzaretsky@nhregister.comor 789-5722. İNew Haven Register 2004 |
