As an update to a medical tiered response agreement came before council on Aug. 15, Puslinch Fire Chief Bob Gordon clarified that he was just looking for some input from council.
He noted Puslinch’s classification means that the department would not respond to all types of calls under the agreement.
Gordon stressed that this is just a general agreement that the ambulance service was seeking.
The Ministry of Health and Long Term Care – Emergency Health Services, the Ministry of Community Safety and Correctional Services – Office of the Fire Marshal and the Ontario Association of Fire Chiefs support the implementation of formal tiered response agreements between public safety agencies such as ambulance, fire and police services.
Tiered response is recognized internationally as an effective method of coordinating public or private safety agencies to provide rapid first response assistance to the public in the timeliest and efficient manner possible.
Under that approach, the closest appropriate emergency response agency (based on time) is to render assistance at the scene of an emergency incident until the primary response agency can arrive.
In his report to council, Gordon said, “The goal of the new Tiered Response Agreement will ensure that Puslinch Fire and Rescue Services is dispatched in a timely manner to medical emergencies where they can have a positive impact on life safety and patient care. The new tiered response protocols will be inputted into the Central Ambulance Communications Centre (CACe) computer and automatically notify Guelph Fire Department Dispatch (GFDD) in the event a medical call meets the tiered response criteria. This new system will be much faster than the old method of utilizing a land line and having the CACC dispatcher copying the caller’s information, dispatching an ambulance and then contacting the GFDD via a phone line and relaying the information.”
The new agreement would replace previous memorandums of understanding regarding tiered response criteria.
Mayor Dennis Lever said he’d heard about a program to change the ambulance response criteria in an effort to shorten response times.
“Is this part of that – to help achieve those goals?” Lever asked.
Puslinch deputy chief Stephen Good suggested this was more for their own statistics.
Gordon added, “If everything is working right, when they get the call, it is supposed to automatically be dispatched to Guelph, which in turn would let us know if we’re needed.”
Lever said the idea of the formalized tiered response agreement seemed like a logical step.
“How much will it change what is done now.”
“Nothing,” said Gordon.
Good added the department has essentially been doing this for some time now.
Council quickly endorsed the recommendation that it approve the 2012 Memorandum of Understanding for the Activation of Tiered Response.
