Leon County Emergency Medical Services

Leon County Emergency Medical Services is located in Tallahassee, Florida beginning service January 1, 2004. LCEMS provides emergency medical services to 657 square miles and all citizens and visitors of Leon County regardless of social economic status. Leon County EMS is part of a comprehensive system operating through a cooperative agreement between the City of Tallahassee and Leon County.

Command

*Chief of Emergency Medical Services
*1 - Medical director
*1 - Deputy Chief of Operations
*1 - Deputy Chief of Administration
*1 - Major of training and quality assurance
*4 - Captains as shift supervisors
*4 - Lieutenants as EMS controllers
*3 - Administrative assistants
*2 - Supply technicians
*1 - Billing coordinator
*87 - field personnel including paramedics, emergency medical technicians, and FTO's (sergeants)

LCEMS Facility

The Leon County Emergency Medical Services facility is located at Miccosukee Road and Blair Stone Road located between Tallahassee's two hospitals, Capital Regional Medical Center and Tallahassee Memorial Healthcare. It is currently co-located with Leon County Public Works.

System response

All 9-1-1 calls are received at the Leon County Sheriff's Office dispatch center which operates as the center for all EMS systems using the Computerized Medical Priority Dispatch Protocol. That call is triaged for appropriate response and is handled by the Tallahassee Fire Department and means of transport determined. EMS dispatchers also keep ambulances informed as they drive to the scene.

Emergency vehicles

*1 - Chevy Suburban
*3 - Ford Expeditions
*2 - Type III "Cart style" MERV's (Medical Emergency Response Vehicles) that are used at public events, games and parades.
*20 - Type I ambulances, most manufactured by Frazer, Ltd of Houston, Texas are equipped with 12 lead EKG capabilities.

Operation of vehicles

*LCEMS utilizes 3 ambulances deployed at Station 12 in Chaires, Station 13 in Woodville, and Station 14 in Fort Braden 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
*Between 7 and 10 ambulances are deployed system-wide with 10 in operation during peak times in the both unincorporated and incorporated areas of Leon County.
*Between 4 to 8 ambulances are deployed in the incorporated area on 12-hour shifts using a peak-load staffing and flexible deployment concept. This allows for an increased number of ambulances during times when the need for services is higher and decreased staffing during historically low activity.

Special Operations Unit

The primary mission of Leon County EMS Special Operations Unit is to provide advanced Mass Casualty Incident Management and Medical Care Capabilities to victims of natural or man made disasters. Most recently, members of the Special Operations Unit have been deployed to Mississippi following Hurricane Katrina and to South Florida following the devastating 2005 Atlantic hurricane season there.

External links

* [http://www.co.leon.fl.us/LCEMS/index.asp LCEMS Official site]
* [http://www.frazerbilt.com/flash.php Frazer, Ltd]