Ill. EMS moves into firehouse to reduce response times

By Bridgette Fox
The Telegraph

ROODHOUSE, Ill. — A Greene County ambulance soon will be operating out of Roodhouse to cut down on long waits for emergency care, according to officials.

Two emergency service personnel will staff an advanced life support ambulance and respond from Roodhouse Fire Protection District’s firehouse. Boyd Healthcare Services, which oversees Greene County Ambulance Service, said the new placement likely will begin within the next two weeks.

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“The change of quarters should decrease response times to the northern part of the county during medical and traumatic emergencies,” officials said.

About 75% of the ambulance runs Greene County Ambulance performs are out of northern Greene County, according to Boyd. From Carrollton, where Greene County Ambulance Service is based, it can take around 20 minutes for an ambulance to reach the Roodhouse area.

Response times in the southern part of Greene County won’t change after the move because an ambulance and two staffers will remain in Carrollton, officials said.

“We are thrilled about this collaboration and the reduced response times EMS will be able to provide because of it,” Boyd Healthcare Services said in an online statement. “Thank you Roodhouse Fire for allowing us to station an ambulance and EMS team members at your fire station to better serve our North Greene community.”

Roodhouse Fire Protection District is allowing the ambulance to operate out of the firehouse while the ambulance’s future home is built, hospital spokesperson Karley Tucker said.

“It was originally our plan to station an ambulance and EMS team at our White Hall clinic being built this year, but this collaboration has enabled us to do this much sooner,” Tucker said.

Details about the clinic’s construction were not provided, but the ambulance eventually will stop operating out of the Roodhouse firehouse and move to the clinic, Tucker said.

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