Volunteer Ambulance Corps Responded To Nearly 2,100 Calls in 2009

In 2009, the Newtown Volunteer Ambulance Corps (NVAC) received 2,097 calls for help, averaging 5.7 calls a day. The corps provided care to 2,395 patients, according to NVAC spokeswoman Nancy McLachlan.

The majority of 911 emergency calls are received during the daytime hours, from 6 am to 6 pm. Often, there are multiple calls in progress at the same time, in which a crew is on one call and another 911 call is received, Ms McLachlan said in a statement.

The ambulance station is at 77 Main Street, where there are three ambulances and a paramedic vehicle garaged. Typically, one ambulance crew and a paramedic is stationed there.

In 2009, there were 354 situations involving “double calls” in which two ambulance crews were on calls simultaneously. On 110 occasions, three crews were on calls simultaneously.

Also in 2009, there were 20 situations in which four calls were in progress at the same time, Ms McLachlan said.

NVAC participates in a “mutual aid” program with neighboring towns to ensure the fastest response times when multiple calls are dispatched. If a neighboring ambulance service is not available for help, then a commercial ambulance service is contacted.

Despite the town’s growth and an increasing need for emergency care, the corps is able to maintain an all-volunteer membership of more than 60 emergency medical technicians (EMTs), according to Ms McLachlan.

Some nearby towns which are unable to staff their ambulances with volunteer crews have been forced to pay for a daytime staffing crew, she said.

Newtown has a “direct response” program in which ambulance corps members and volunteer firefighters respond to calls in their own vehicles. Firefighters have EMT training for such situations.

Considering the town’s large size and the presence of only one ambulance station, direct responders play a critical role in providing fast emergency medical care, Ms McLachlan said.

NVAC members carry portable emergency radios or have such radios installed in their vehicles. Corps members are allowed to use a green flashing light in the vehicles to alert traffic when they are responding to calls.

Motorists are not required to move to the right to allow EMTs in their personal vehicles to pass, but it is helpful if traffic is aware that the green light signifies that an emergency response is in progress to a person in need, Ms McLachlan said.

Emergency medical staffers and firefighters often go directly to the scene of motor vehicle accidents and to incidents involving people with breathing difficulties and cardiac arrest.

NVAC has an Internet website with updated information on its educational class offerings and how to volunteer for the organization, www.newtownambulancect.org.

The group has a junior corps program for people ages 16 through 18. Through the program, teenagers can learn life-saving skills and become involved in community service. Many past junior corps members have moved on to education and careers in the medical field, Ms McLachlan said.

The spokeswoman pointed out that the NVAC is dedicated to emergency service. For nonemergency transport, people should contact the receiving hospital or other facility to make the appropriate arrangements for transport, she said.

Recent statistics show that half of all heart attack patients admitted into the hospital still arrive there via private vehicles, Ms McLachlan.

If a person has medical symptoms such as: difficulty breathing, crushing chest pain that radiates down the left side, or profuse sweating that is not related to exercise, an emergency 911 call should be placed for their emergency medical care, she said.

People should call 911 when they encounter emergency situations which they cannot handle, she said.