WELCOME TO THE COUNTY OF EL DORADO EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERVICES AGENCY 

Local Emergency Responders and Hospital Staff Recognized During EMS Week

Paramedics, Emergency Medical Technicians (EMTs), firefighters and local hospital medical staff in El Dorado County are being recognized during National Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Week, May 20 – 26.  “EMS Week is a great time to say thank you to the dedicated men and women in El Dorado County who make saving lives their mission,” said Richard Todd, Administrator of the EMS Agency within the El Dorado County Health and Human Services Agency.

Each year in El Dorado County, over 14,000 calls for emergency medical assistance are received through the 911 system.  The local EMS System is highly collaborative and includes: The 911 system, dispatch centers, first responders, paramedic ambulances, air ambulances, acute care hospitals, trauma centers and medical oversight by the local EMS Agency. Every 911 medical call is coordinated by paramedics and EMTs through hospitals located in El Dorado County. “This system works together everyday so that residents and visitors receive seamless quality care from the moment they call 911 until they arrive safely at the hospital,” said Todd.  “We have many dedicated people in this system who perform extraordinary acts of service and kindness, including those who work and volunteer as paramedics, fire fighters and EMTs.”   

The El Dorado County EMS Agency works in partnership with local hospitals, certifies and regularly trains local paramedics and emergency medical technicians in El Dorado County, and develops policies and procedures for emergency medical response in the field.  There are currently 734 certified EMTs and 398 accredited paramedics in El Dorado County.  The EMS Agency’s staff includes EMS Agency Medical Director, Dr. David Brazzel, EMS Agency Administrator, Richard Todd, Quality Improvement Coordinator, Brian Bresnahan (Paramedic), and Health Program Specialist, Patti Perillo. 

For more information about the EMS Agency or the EMS System in El Dorado County visit the County’s website at www.edcgov.us/ems.

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Protocols/Policies Effective January 1st, 2012

January 2012 Protocol Update
ALS Unit Inventories 2012
Bradycardia 2012
EMS Communications 2012
Pulseless Arrest 2012
Narrow Complex Tach 2012
Wide Complex Tach 2012
CHF/Pulmonary Edema 2012

Continuous Quality Improvement (CQI) Learning Points

Click here to view the "Winter 2012 CQI Learning Points"
Click here to view the "Summer 2011 CQI Learning Points"

The Change From "A-B-C" to "C-A-B"
The newest development in the 2010 AHA Guidelines for CPR and ECC is a change in the basic life support (BLS) sequence of steps from "A-B-C" (Airway, Breathing, Chest compressions) to "C-A-B" (Chest compressions, Airway, Breathing) for adults and pediatric patients (children and infants, excluding newly borns). Although the experts agreed that it is important to reduce time to first chest compressions, they were aware that a change in something as established as the A-B-C sequence would require re-education of everyone who has ever learned CPR. Click here for more information.

Click here to review the "Highlights of the 2010 America Heart Association Guidelines for CPR and ECC" 

All healthcare professionals are needed to volunteer for public service in the event of a significant disaster or a public health emergency. You can make a difference during times of disaster by helping people, animals and your community. For more information, click here.  

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You can now sign up to receive an email notice when certain pages of our website are updated. Perhaps you want to know when a new "Paramedic Alert" has been posted, or there is a change to an EMS policy. Just click on the logo  if it appears on the top of the page you are interested in and follow the instructions to subscribe to this service. You will get an email from us automatically every time we update that page. You can subscribe to as many pages as you wish. It's free and it's easy. Try it today!