No multipurpose ambulances
Dominick J. Lanza, Sr.
Battalion Chief
Broward County (FL) Fire Rescue
I must take issue with the multipurpose ambulance notion presented in “The Evolution of the Fire Service EMS Vehicle” (Fire Service EMS, July 1998). We all know that EMS and fire suppression go hand in hand and that the service is evolving as one that all fire departments will soon be providing. If your department currently provides the service, you will know. If you are contemplating providing the service, you should know the inherent problems associated with this idea.
Firefighters are suited both mentally and physically to provide this vital service to the community. While firefighters can serve this dual purpose as paramedics and firefighters, their vehicles should not!
Many communities are currently trying the “rescue transport engine” idea. Under this idea, you take a 25-ton fire pumper and place a stretcher into the crew cab. Now you have an engine/ambulance. Right? Wrong! You have a 25-ton $400,000 fire apparatus being misused. How, you might ask? What sense does it make to take this rolling firefighting machine and its entire crew out of service to transport a broken leg, a cut hand, or even a heart attack? None! Essentially, you have diminished your firefighting capability in that response area to ZERO!
We should not confuse the advanced life support (ALS) transport engine with the first-response ALS engine. Under that concept, firefighter/paramedics can provide ALS care until a transport vehicle arrives. They then return to service for the next fire or rescue call. On the other hand, what sense does it make to add a 250-gpm pump, 200 feet of 134-inch hose, and 200 gallons of water to an ambulance? None! First the vehicle becomes very unstable and cumbersome to drive. Firefighters respond and arrive first in. Do they stand around or put the pump on remote control and enter without backup? There exists a great possibility that this multipurpose vehicle would be misused and sent in place of an engine company, only to arrive and find a fire that exceeds the capability of the vehicle or the number of personnel on it. In most communities, the mini-attack truck no longer exists for just these reasons.
I would suggest to anyone thinking of either of these concepts: Do not do it. Firefighters can do ALS paramedic duties, but a separate vehicle should be tasked to each effort. Should you get caught in the trap of buying these multipurpose vehicles, either your firefighting or ALS capabilities will suffer. Once you short-staff to operate these types of vehicles and say they will work, you may never get the personnel to properly operate each on its own.
