By EMS1 Staff
AUSTIN, Texas — In order to combat an alarming number of verbal and physical assaults on paramedics, an EMS and police department have teamed up to address the issue head-on.
FOX7 reported that Austin-Travis County EMS and the Austin Police Department rolled out specific call codes to help police get to them quickly in an emergency.
The new procedure, spurred by an ATCEMS survey that revealed more than 63% of personnel were physically and verbally assaulted more than once in the past two years, was announced Monday at a public safety commission meeting.
“That survey gave us some surprising results that there are actually more assaults occurring on medics, not just within our department but across the industry,” Brian Bregenzer, division chief at ATCEMS, said.
With the codes, police will know there is an assault happening on a first responder. Paramedics are also receiving training to learn specialized de-escalation techniques.
Inside EMS: The increase of assaults on EMS providers and how it’s affecting the industry
Listen as our Inside EMS co-hosts are joined by Austin Travis County EMS Chief Ernie Rodriguez to discuss the staggering survey results about the prevalence of violence in EMS.