Queen Creek will soon be offering its own ambulance services in an attempt to provide better care for local residents.
In April 2022, the Queen Creek Town Council voted for the town to start providing its own ambulance service through the Fire and Medical Department.
Now, the town is accepting applications for 24 full-time emergency medical technicians and paramedics as it prepares to launch its ambulance service in July.
Last year’s decision to stop contracting with a private ambulance company came after Fire Chief Vance Gray and Deputy Fire Chief Lee Barnes told the council about numerous problems occurring with American Medical Response.
According to a staff report, there was a ”decline in the level of service provided by the private provider. The decline in the level of service is evidenced by a reduced number of AMR ambulances located in the region (Queen Creek, Gilbert and Mesa) and staffing shortages. This has led to AMR not being able to cover Queen Creek and, in some cases, not being able to respond to emergency incidents.”
Barnes highlighted to the council one particular situation the town faced with the private ambulance service.
“In August of last year, we had a personnel issue in which an AMR paramedic didn’t want to run a call,” Barnes said. “He placed his unit out of service, abandoned his shift and walked out of the station. The closest unit available to respond came from Sossaman and Main and had a 38-minute response time to that particular call.”
It has been estimated that the cost of the ambulances will total $1.9 million. Personnel costs are expected at around $2.5 million. Other operating expenses, such as supplies and fuel, are expected to cost $200,000.
The ambulance service will not result in a tax increase, as fees for service will offset a portion of the cost, and the remaining costs will be funded by the town’s operating budget. The service is expected to have a yearly operating loss of $700,000 because of unpaid patient bills.
Fees for the ambulance service are regulated by the Arizona Department of Health Services. Patients who use the town’s ambulance service will receive a bill from the town.
The ambulance service will include a unit at each of the town’s five fire stations. Four of the ambulance and crew units will be fully staffed, providing 24/7 coverage and flexible deployment to optimize response times. Each ambulance will be staffed with two employees — one EMT- paramedic and one EMT-basic.
The town will be accepting applications through May 28, interviews will be held from June 19-29 and employment is expected to start on July 24.
Minimum requirements for applicants are:
High school diploma or GED
Must be at least 18 years of age at the time of hire
Cannot be on the Office of Inspector General list of excluded individuals/entities
Possession of a valid Arizona driver’s license
Possession of a current Arizona or national EMCT certification
Possession of a current CPR certification
Possession of a current advanced cardiac life support certification (required for paramedics, not EMT)
Benefits include vacation and sick time, medical, dental and vision insurance, and Arizona state retirement.
The positions will be assigned to a 48-96-hour work schedule that will include nights, weekends and holidays.
Applications for the positions can be accessed online at the Queen Creek Fire and Medical Department’s website.
We’d like to invite our readers to submit their civil comments, pro or con, on this issue. Email AZOpinions@iniusa.org.
Janet Perez News Editor | Queen Creek &
San Tan Valley @AzNewsmedia
Meet Janet Janet Perez joined Independent Newsmedia as editor of the Queen Creek Independent and Florence Independent in 2020. She started her career in 1989 with the Gannett-owned El Paso Times. In 1992, she moved to Tempe and has worked in newspapers, magazines, radio and television. She left Arizona for three years to work at New Mexico State University and Baylor University before returning to work at Arizona State University. Missing the business, she went back to journalism in 2017.
Community: A long-time pet owner, she supports animal welfare causes.
Education: University of Texas at El Paso with a BA in journalism and a minor in political science.
Random Fact: She had a head full of random facts.
Hobbies: Reading, watching documentaries, cooking and playing with her dogs.
By 
Comments
No comments on this item Please log in to comment by clicking here