专题组响应EMS支持的呼叫

大多数明尼苏达人打911的时候, they expect to quickly receive help from emergency medical services (EMS) workers and other first responders.

But those expectations are becoming further from reality in some parts of the state as EMS stresses pile on and ambulance response times are delayed due to consolidated services and expanded coverage areas. 一些社区甚至面临失去救护车服务的可能性.

如此重要的服务怎么会在明尼苏达州的某些地区完全消失呢? Ongoing workforce shortages and trying to make do with inadequate funding have stretched the EMS system so thin that it’s nearing its breaking point.

“The pandemic really took an already stretched system and just added so much weight to it that we’re starting to see some of the foundations crumble,Michael Juntunen说, president-elect of the Minnesota Ambulance Association (MAA) and coordinator for Mayo Clinic Community Paramedicine.

Juntunen说，一些地面救护车服务得到了当地的资助, but the vast majority rely on reimbursement from public medical programs that fail to adequately cover the cost of EMS services.

“(EMS has) moved from just being a transportation service into a more health care delivery service where we’re providing a lot of emergent care that is not all that different from what you would experience in an emergency room,君图宁说. “我们有所有的主要设备来帮助解决人们遇到的任何重大问题, 但我们还是要拿运输服务的钱.”

虽然急救医生和护理人员期望提供的服务质量有所提高, 医疗保险报销率一直停滞不前, 导致设备所需资金不足, 培训, 为EMS工人提供可维持生活的工资. Though Juntunen shared reimbursement issues will need to be resolved at the federal level, he knows those at the local level can no longer ignore the realities of first responders’ stresses and lacking resources.

创建明尼苏达州EMS交付和可持续发展工作组

在2023年立法会议期间, 来自明尼苏达城市联盟的利益相关者, MAA, 明尼苏达州消防队长协会, and the Minnesota Association of Small Cities (MAOSC) came together to propose the creation of a task force dedicated to addressing EMS issues and suggesting solutions. 该工作组由19名利益相关者组成，自9月11日以来每两周召开一次会议. 6, 2023.

Juntunen和Edina消防队长Andrew Slama被任命为工作组的联合主席, 哪个计划见面几个月.

“We have agreed that any recommendation coming out of the task force will be unanimous among all stakeholders,斯拉玛说。. “That in itself is a really tall task and speaks to the gravity of these stakeholders working together to provide a solution that meets everyone’s needs and is mission-driven. 这项任务是为明尼苏达州居民提供更好的服务.”

Slama explained that the entire EMS system is impacted when ambulance response times are delayed. If a police officer responds to a 9-1-1 call and must wait 45 minutes for an ambulance to arrive, 在这45分钟里警官无法回应其他报警电话.

“It delays the entire system when one portion of it isn’t able to fulfill the duties as they would like to or as they should or as the community would expect them to,斯拉玛说。.

According to Slama, delayed ambulance arrival times aren’t just occurring in Greater Minnesota. 大都市地区一直在努力应对电话数量增加和劳动力短缺的问题, 迫使利益相关者调整他们的反应. This adjustment in response does not require any communication with the community they are responding to or local responders creating further challenges in the public safety response model.

Juntunen在大多数部门都是如此, 急救人员几乎会立即接到911报警电话, 无论紧急程度如何. Task force members have suggested gauging the urgency of each request and saving crews’ last available ambulances for high-priority calls.

“When that cardiac arrest call comes in, we might be delayed getting to it,君图宁说. “We should probably have a safety net there—especially in our urban areas—to make sure that that’s met. We need to look at ways to really evaluate the impacts of that change and whether it would be appropriate.”

Slama said that while the task force’s stakeholders may have differing priorities for mending the state’s EMS system, they all agree on their inability to continue doing the same things and expecting different results.

“Innovative ideas that challenge the current ideals are going to be what gets Minnesota to a new system that can deliver better service,斯拉玛说。.

在地方一级可以做些什么

Juntunen acknowledged the strides made toward EMT and paramedic recruitment during the 2023 Legislative Session, including receiving funding for scholarships and pushing for programs that introduce high school students to the profession. 今年, he wants the Legislature to pass a funding bill to help alleviate some stresses regarding affording new equipment, 消除招聘障碍, 并为EMS员工提供可维持生活的工资.

Slama shared his excitement for the task force’s discussions on local input and accountability, 他指出，对于全国性的医疗服务危机，没有放之四海而皆准的解决方案.

Juntunen and Slama agree that while local legislators and city leaders can’t make direct changes to increasing Medicare reimbursement rates, 他们可以对自己和社区进行教育，了解急救人员面临的障碍.

“尤其是在明尼苏达州的农村, I would say that they need to start engaging in conversations with the ambulance services that cover their area,君图宁说. “即使由于自身的限制，他们在经济上无法提供帮助, 就行业进行一些对话将是有益的.”

Slama encourages local leaders to dive deep into educating themselves on their communities’ EMS system’s operations and barriers.

“和市政当局谈谈, fire-based, 以及医院医疗服务提供者所面临的挑战, 这样你就能对挑战有一个真正透彻的理解,斯拉玛说。. “了解挑战的多个不同方面, 因为这不是一个放之四海而皆准的解决方案.”

The League will continue to advocate for funding and policy solutions that recognize different EMS models and support EMS statewide during the 2024 legislative session. The League will also engage in the work of the Minnesota Legislature’s Joint Task Force on EMS. 了解更多信息, please contact League Intergovernmental Relations Director Anne Finn at (651) 281-1263 or (电子邮件保护).