The Norton Fire Rescue Department still remains on the cutting edge of EMS in this area. This year we saw a 10% increase in EMS related calls. We are above the National average of Advanced Life Support calls with an average of 45% of our calls requiring this advanced care.
We operate 2 Advanced Life Support Rescues, staffing them with 13 EMT's , 6 E MT-Intermediates, and 11 EMT-Paramedics. We supplement this with 5 EMT's from the Call Department. All members of the department are Semi-Auto Defib qualified and we currently have 5 SAD's in various first response vehicles. Ongoing EMS training is mandatory from the Commonwealth and each level of EMT requires a certain amount of train ing. On average, every EMT trains a minimum of 80 hours per year. This translates to approximately 2400 man-hours per year in EMS training. With emergency medical calls still on the rise nationwide, EMS continues to be one of the most important functions of the Norton Fire/Rescue Department.
With our state of the art cardiac monitor, which has the ability to provide 12-lead EKG s, several heart attacks have been diagnosed in the field by the Paramedics and, outcomes have been extremely successful. All EMT Paramedics have received this advanced training and are able to detect and treat heart attack victims quicker and more efficiently in the field. Keep in mind that this is only a small part in the whole system, wh ich begins with you, the bystander, knowing CPR and First Aid, and being able to administer this care prior to the department's arrival, along with businesses having Semi -Auto Defibs available to their employees.
In closing, I would like to thank all the members of the Norton Fire/Rescue Department for their loyalty, and dedication to the citizens of this town, and also thank th e citizens for their past and future support to the EMS Division.
