By Ann Work
The Times Record News
BUKBURNETT, Texas — When Burkburnett volunteer firefighter Jared Judd learned from his senior fire department personnel several weeks ago there would be a change in the department’s official response procedure to medical calls in outlying areas starting Jan. 1, 2010, he waited for a media announcement to Burkburnett residents of the new plan.
But the announcement never came.
As the days ticked down toward the changeover date, Judd noticed discussion of the plan that paramedics on duty would no longer respond to any county calls summarized in minutes from a Dec. 30, 2009 Burkburnett officers’ meeting that were posted on an interdepartmental Web site called Texcom Advantage. In the minutes, Fire Chief Rod Ryalls criticized the new policy, calling it “a step back.”
In the minutes, it states, “Effective 1 January 2010, the paramedics on duty will no longer respond to any County calls. FF (firefighters) will handle all County calls, medical and fire.”
Yet, still no announcement was made to the public.
Judd, fearing that the change would create a longer response time to citizens living in outlying areas, worried that citizens weren’t being notified of changes that might be of life-or-death importance for them.
When the new year turned over with no announcement made, Judd called the Times Record News.
“Response time has gone up. The level of care has gone down. And the city has not deemed it necessary to notify people of that change,” he said Tuesday.
Judd praised the qualified paramedics, fellow firefighters and other officials who speed to emergency calls.
But the public needs to know about the new plan that went into effect at midnight on Jan. 1. As a firefighter, he had been instructed the fire department staff alone would be burdened with the responsibility of answering medical calls outside the city limits.
“Older people with conditions that are used to receiving care in five minutes now may be 10 or 15 minutes. They won’t have paramedics, which means they won’t have someone that will be able to push drugs. My concern is people won’t know.”
But Burkburnett officials weren’t making any such announcements Tuesday.
When contacted Tuesday by the Times Record News, Burkburnett City Manager Mike Slye denied any change had been made. “Quite frankly, the change hasn’t been made,” he said in a telephone interview Tuesday. “It won’t be considered until the council addresses it on the third Monday in January.”
He said he met with Burkburnett Fire Chief Rod Ryalls and the police Chief Dec. 30 and discussed the issue. “No, the fire chief is definitely not in favor of that change,” Slye said. “The police chief is in favor of it. When it comes right down to it, as stewards of public moneys, we’ve got to be concerned about and provide for emergency management services for the folks who pay their bills.”
Families who live in the unincorporated areas of the county don’t pay Burkburnett city taxes. Because the emergency medical service personnel are funded by the city, priority ought to go to Burk citizens, he said.
“It’s prudent to think that our paramedics, who are paid for by the community, are available in the event of an emergency, and that they’re not out running around in the unincorporated county area providing those types of services for those people who don’t pay for them,” Slye said.
The unincorporated area houses about 130 to 150 people, Slye said, drawing numbers from the water meters in the area.
Folks who live outside of Burkburnett will be served by the volunteer fire department, he said.
A flat fee is added to a outlying resident who calls on emergency medical services, he said.
The need for a change in policy was raised by the medics, he said, who seemed to be answering calls farther and farther away from the city proper and now were wondering, “How far is far? Where do we stop?” Slye said.
“On Jan. 18, the city council will hear the arguments for and against taking our paramedics outside the city limits,” Slye said.
The county also contracts the services of a local ambulance provider that is dispatched for 911 calls. “The ambulance often beats our medic to the call,” Slye said. “They’re on the scene when our guy shows up.”
County Commissioner Pat Norris confirmed that ambulance service covers the unincorporated area, paid for by the county.
Norris said the issue was on the agenda for January’s council meeting.
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