Emergency Medical Services

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Moto Mission Vision Values Description Goals Activities

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MOTTO

Providing Top Notch Customer Service & Unconditional Teamwork

MISSION

The MISSION of the Northampton County Department of EMS is to provide basic and advanced life support providers able to respond quickly, minimizing pain, suffering and loss when emergencies occur, by delivering the highest quality emergency care to citizens and visitors Northampton County.

VISION

The VISION of the Northampton County Department of EMS is two-fold. First, build a combination career and volunteer program offering a positive work environment which includes team building, mentoring, education and opportunity. Second, provide all the components needed to maintain a viable, working volunteer EMS program in Northampton County.

VALUES

The VALUES of the Northampton County Department of EMS are:

1. Emergency response and citizen services are always our highest priority and overriding concern;
2. Each member is committed to teamwork, personal integrity, ethical conduct and personal accountability for their actions, and;
3. Each member is committed to exhibiting in them and promoting within their co-workers the highest standards of service professionalism.
4. Each member is committed to SERVICE PROFESSIONALISM:

a. Attitude: Maintain an attitude of professional respect for the value of life and the dignity of others, the worth of caring, and the importance of helping others;
b. Actions: Demonstrate professional knowledge, skills, and abilities. Actions should be deliberate and appropriate for the situation at hand and carried out with expedience, efficiency, courtesy, kindness and respect for others;
c. Appearance: Present the best possible professional appearance in self, apparatus, equipment and station. It generates pride and confidence.

DEPARTMENT DESCRIPTION:

The Northampton County Department of EMS prides itself as being a combination career and volunteer department. While our Volunteer Division is new, it is growing and is a primary focus of our current recruitment efforts.

Our department provides career staff 24/7, utilizing two types of coverage. The first is 6am to 6pm Monday through Friday, generally staffing two (2) volunteer ambulances, one in the south at Cape Charles Rescue Service and one in the north at Community Fire Company. Most recently we have increased daytime coverage by adding a “Duty Supervisor”, traveling in a quick response vehicle, to oversee and assist daytime staff as necessary. The second type of coverage is offered on nights, weekends and holidays. Our new LifeLine ambulance, staffed with a minimum of two and typically at the Intermediate or Paramedic, answers any call dispatched in Northampton County. This crew assists both volunteer and career staff and transports patients to the closest Emergency Department as necessary.

We are also proud to share the fact we utilize EMScharts, a web based EMS charting system, since 2004. NCEMS was the first in the state of Virginia to use EMScharts and remains the only agency on the Eastern Shore offering a typed and always legible patient care report.

Northampton County also recognizes three other independent non-profit agencies providing EMS services: Community Volunteer Fire Company, Northampton Fire & Rescue Company and Cape Charles Rescue Service. These volunteer EMS agencies receive funding through billing for services and fund raising activities (i.e. bingo, letter drives, picture drives, etc.). Northampton County provides no direct financial support to these EMS agencies; however we do employ career staff to supplement volunteer coverage.

DEPARTMENT GOALS & OBJECTIVES

1. Continually provide ambulance response, meeting the provisions set forth by the “Northampton County EMS Response Plan” established in 2008. This plan stipulates the following:
• Mobilization Standard = 3 minutes or less (elapsed time in minutes between the dispatch time and the responding time ~the wheels of the vehicle start moving).
• Responding Interval Standard = 20 minutes or less (elapsed time in minutes between the dispatch time and the arrival on scene time ~the wheels of the EMS vehicle stop moving).

2. Build a successful combination career and volunteer program, offering a positive work environment with team building, mentoring, education and opportunity.

3. Relocate our operations to the old Machipongo Middle School located @ 7247 Young Street, Machipongo, VA 23405. This newly renovated facility would offer the following:

• 4 bay garage with equipment/personnel decontamination area
• Administrative offices
• Kitchen and Dining Facilities
• Bunking Facilities for up to 12 persons
• Multi-functional activity room
• Shower Facilities
• Training/Conference Room w/multiple room breakout space
• Generated power (for power outages)
• Exercise & Fitness Room

4. Establish a state-of-the-art EMS training center able to offer all levels of EMS certifications, in conjunction with the Eastern Shore EMS Council, Tidewater EMS Council, Virginia Office of EMS and Riverside Shore Memorial Hospital.

5. Build a stronger Emergency Management program, through the recruitment of personnel specializing in disaster mitigation, response and recovery, while possessing a primary role in EMS.

6. Enhance our new training/conference room with capabilities to function as either the primary or secondary Emergency Operations Center for Northampton County

CURRENT ACTIVITIES

1. Actively recruiting volunteers.

• NCEMS Volunteer Brochure
• NCEMS Volunteer Program
• NCEMS Volunteer Application

2. Hosting an Emergency Medical Technician – Basic Course. This course is offered on Tuesday and Wednesday evenings, by instructors Diane Crockett, Randi Merritt and many other practical assistants.

3. In the planning stages of renovating part of the old Machipongo Middle School in order to relocate our EMS operations there.

4. With funds provided by VA Rescue Squad Assistance Fund, USDA and the Riverside Foundation, all six (6) Northampton County ambulances and one (1) quick response vehicle have been outfitted with LifePak 15 defibrillators, capable of acquitting a 12 lead EKG. Through additional funds provided by Sentara Norfolk General Hospital and the Eastern Shore EMS Council, these units will in the very near future be able to transmit the 12 lead EKG to Riverside Shore Memorial Hospital for immediate review by the Emergency Department Physician.

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