- Mercy Medic 105
-
Mercy Medic 105 is a hospital-based Emergency Medical Service in south-eastern Delaware County, PA. Medic 105 provides staffing for both Basic Life Support (BLS) and Advanced life support (ALS) ambulance services which respond from locations throughout the county on a contracted basis to local municipalities. Mercy Fitzgerald Hospital provides staffing to ensure 24 hour emergency coverage to local fire company-based ambulances and (currently) a single ALS chase car which respond to 911 emergency calls for service. At any given time, Mercy EMS has at least 15 employees on the clock which respond first-due to emergency calls in eight municipalities on eight different apparatus. Mercy EMS also provides EMS personnel who respond as a part of the Delaware County South East Regional Emergency Response Team.Contents
Area of Coverage
Mercy EMS provides primary first-due ALS and BLS responders to eight municipalities in Delaware County, covering an approximate total of 8.1 square miles (21 km2) and approximately 65,200 residents (Currently). These units respond out of local firehouses, with the exception of an ALS chase car. This area of first-due coverage includes:
- Folcroft Borough - Folcroft Fire Company #1, Station 01
- Clifton Heights Borough - Clifton Heights Fire Company #1, Station 03
- Darby Borough - Darby Fire Company #1, Station 04
- Sharon Hill Borough - Sharon Hill Fire Company #1, Station 09
- Yeadon Borough- Yeadon Fire Company #1, Station 16
- Lansdowne Borough - Lansdowne Fire Company #1, Station 19
- Darby Township (Upper end) - Briarcliffe Fire Company, Station 75
- Colwyn Borough - Darby Fire Company #1, Station 04
Mercy EMS units are also listed on the "run cards" (order of response) of numerous other municipalities on a second or third due basis. These second-due municipalities increase the Mercy EMS coverage area by 17.6 square miles (46 km2) and approximately 135,500 residents to a potential total of 25.7 square miles (67 km2) of coverage with approximately 200,500 residents (Currently). These municipalities include, but are not limited to:
- Springfield Township
- Upper Darby Township
- Glenolden Borough
- Collingdale Borough
- Darby Township (Lower end)
- Aldan Borough
Map of Mercy EMS coverage area in Delaware County, PA
EMS Units
Mercy EMS provides staffing for seven ambulances and one ALS "chase car". Four of the ambulances are staffed within PA Department of Health guidelines by two EMTs, providing BLS services to those who call 911 within their service area. Three of the ambulances are staffed within PA DOH guidelines as Mobile Intensive Care Units, or MICUs. MICUs are staffed by one Paramedic and one EMT-B which provide primary ALS and BLS services to those who call 911 within their service area. The ALS Chase car (Designated as Delaware County Medic 105) provides ALS services to those communities without a MICU, responds second due should a MICU be unavailable, and responds to assist other Paramedics should additional ALS resources be required.
The following is a list of all units operated by Mercy EMS:
- Ambulance 01-7 (Primary BLS for Folcroft Borough)
- Ambulance 03-7 (Primary BLS Clifton Heights Borough, 2nd/3rd due in Springfield Township & 3rd due in Upper Darby Township)
- Medic 04-7A (Primary ALS & BLS for Darby Borough & Colwyn Borough, 2nd due in Collingdale, Aldan, and Sharon Hill Boroughs)
- Ambulance 04-7B (Primary BLS for Sharon Hill Borough, 2nd due in Darby and Colwyn Boroughs)
- Medic 16-7 (Primary ALS & BLS for Yeadon Borough, 3rd due in sections of Upper Darby Township)
- Ambulance 19-7 (Primary BLS for Lansdowne Borough, 2nd Due in Clifton Heights Borough)
- Medic 75-7 (Primary ALS & BLS for Darby Township (Upper end), 2nd due in Darby Township (Lower end) and Springfield Township for ALS)
- Medic 105 (Primary ALS for Folcroft Borough, Sharon Hill Borough, and Lansdowne Borough, 2nd due in Glenolden Borough, 4th due in Upper Darby Twp)
All EMS units operated by Mercy EMS are typically dispatched to respond interchangeably to ensure that there is never a gap in coverage. The order of dispatch is typically decided by the municipal Fire Chief, however those staffed 24 hours a day are usually placed higher in the "queue" because of their obvious advantages over volunteer-staffed ambulances. In the event that the first-due ambulance or MICU are unavailable, the county communications center sends the next-due unit to cover the call. Nearly every EMS unit staffed by Mercy EMS is second or third due in another Mercy EMS coverage area, ensuring a prompt response to any medical emergency.
Chain of Command
Mercy EMS Department Chain of CommandMercy EMS is commanded by the Chief of the Paramedic department. He is assisted by a Deputy Chief, and an administrative assistant. The Chief is ultimately responsible for the department and its employees, and co-operates with incident commanders and local Fire Department Officers when managing incidents. The department is divided into four full-time platoons each assigned four Paramedics and 11 EMTs. Each individual Paramedic is responsible for patient care and incident management, and are assisted by EMTs until the patient or incident can be transferred to a higher level of command or care. In the event that a Paramedic is not available or required, the EMT in charge is responsible until such time that the patient or incident can be transferred to a higher level of care or command. Since each incident faced by any EMS provider is ever-changing and completely unique, any multitude of different agencies and their representatives may be in ultimate command of the incident. During such incidents which require a multi-agency response, a fire/rescue response, or a Police response, each incident's command would be (typically) structured following the National Incident Management System or NIMS.
External links
Categories:- Organizations based in Pennsylvania
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.
