DTVAC Begins COVID-19 Response

 

DINGMANS FERRY, PA — On March 25, 2020, Delaware Township Volunteer Ambulance Corps (DTVAC) responded to the Lake Adventure community in Dingman Township. This incident became the first suspected COVID-19 death to occur in Pike County. As a result of this incident, DTVAC instituted provisions in the Incident Command System (ICS) protocol and named Kyle Wright as the Incident Commander. Wright is a Board-Certified National Disaster Health Care Professional and a Nationally Registered Paramedic through the National Registry of Emergency Medical Technicians. Wright appointed Jessica Brumbaugh the Planning and Intelligence Section Chief. Since March 25th DTVAC has been able to keep its ambulances in service 24 hours a day 7 days a week, along with having a second crew available for at least 12 hours a day during peak hours. DTVAC is currently responding to more calls for help than any other EMS agency in Eastern Pike County. 

DTVAC, under Wright’s direction, has been instrumental in implementing county-wide Zoom meetings with all the EMS agencies that are responding to calls for help in Pike County. Through these Zoom meetings, he has been able to provide guidance to other emergency health care providers on how to properly deal with a patient that is exhibiting COVID-19 symptoms. DTVAC has also taken the lead in procuring needed supplies that may run out on local BLS ambulances. The Corps has been able to procure multiple CPAP/BIPAP filters that will be used to help patients who are in respiratory distress. Various CPAP/BiPAP filters were able to be delivered to local and federal agencies. “It is our goal to provide residents of Delaware Township the best care possible,” said Wright, “by assisting other local EMS agencies with obtaining supplies, we are able to keep our ambulance’s in our township more often without needing to cover other townships 911 calls.”

Brumbaugh comes to the Ambulance Corps with a degree in Biology Vertebrate Physiology and a minor in Global Health from Penn State University. Complementing her experiences at Penn State, she has participated in multiple research studies on infectious diseases and public health. Brumbaugh is a certified Remote EMT and certified as a Medical Care Person In Charge (MCPIC) through the National Guard. 

Since Brumbaugh’s appointment, DTVAC has implemented many new operational procedures that have the common goal of providing the highest standard of patient care and keeping healthcare providers safe. Currently, the Ambulance Corps has implemented a “One Patient, One Provider’ policy to reduce the amount of exposure the provider and patient get during a call for service. DTVAC has also implemented a requirement that all of its providers wear surgical masks at all times while on duty in public, and wear N95 masks and gloves when on a call for help. These two policy implementations have allowed ambulance crews to continue to serve the public without fear of being exposed to COVID-19. As a matter of precaution, DTVAC has taken EMS providers over the age of 65 and any who are immunosuppressed off of on-duty ambulances and reassigned them to logistical services for the Corps.

On medical emergency dispatches that involve symptoms of CVOID-19 (cough, fever, difficultly breathing, sore throat, nausea, and vomiting), DTVAC has implemented an enhanced Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) protocol to keep providers safe. This PPE includes gloves, N95 mask or respirator, a full Tyvek suit or gown, hair coverings, and a face shield. The ambulance service has responded to over seventeen COVID-19 symptoms calls for help since needing enhanced PPE and is currently running dangerously close to running out of PPE and other supplies for its providers. The Corp is currently relying on donations from the public for the following supplies; hand sanitizer, bleach, bottled water, duct tape, contractor-style trash bags, ink pens, gloves, laundry detergent, soap, paper bags, batteries (C & AA), and saran wrap.

Since March 25, DTVAC has responded to multiple calls for mutual aid throughout the county. Because of the increased call volume, DTVAC has placed a bin outside of it building to place donations in. The building is also being manned 24 hours a day, unless there is an active call. Donations of any kind can be brought or mailed to 135 Park Road, Dingmans Ferry, PA. Donations of PPE or requests for PPE can be direct to the DTVAC COVID-19 Logistic Section Chief, Lieutenant Dillan Miller. Miller can be reached by dialing 570-828-2345. 

DTVAC EMT at Bon Secours Community Hospital. 

Delaware Township Volunteer Ambulance Corps is a non-profit organization that provides basic life support (BLS) service to Delaware Township. The Corps also provides Advanced Life Support (ALS) service to Delaware Township and surrounding areas. We are always looking for volunteers! If you are someone you know is interested in volunteering please call us at (570)-828-2345. Any press inquires should be directed to cwill@dtvac.org.

DTVAC Receives State Grant Funding

 Dingmans Ferry - Delaware Township Volunteer Ambulance Corps (DTVAC) is proud to announce it has received funding through the 2019-2020 Fire Company and Emergency Medical Services Grant Program. This annual grant program allows fire companies, emergency medical services, and volunteer rescue squads in Pennsylvania the opportunity to obtain funds for upgrading facilities, purchasing emergency equipment, and providing training to their members. DTVAC will use the $9,192.44 in awarded funding for debt reduction associated with replacing an engine in its 2008 Ford Ambulance. This amount is the most money DTVAC has ever received through this program, administered by the Pennsylvania Office of the State Fire Commissioner. Many other local emergency service agencies also received grant funding. 

 

DTVAC is a primarily volunteer organization that is always looking for help. If you are interested in volunteering for DTVAC, please them a call at (570) 828-2345

DTVAC Receives Grant for Patient Data Transmission

Delaware Township Volunteer Ambulance Corps (DTVAC) has received a grant used to purchase a new 4G cellular gateway for use with one of its cardiac monitors. The new gateway modem will replace an older 3G modem and allow for the quicker transmission of data from the ambulance to the hospital. Cellular gateways allow DTVAC paramedics to transmit patient data including EKGs and vital signs to local hospitals. In the case of a patient suffering a heart attack, this technology will allow the emergency department physician to review the patient’s EKG and alert the specialized hospital cardiac catheterization team before the patient arrives at the hospital by ambulance. Hospital cardiac team members may be “on-call” and may need to be paged from home and then respond to the hospital in the middle of the night, so this technology definitely cuts down on the time it takes to administer the proper care to the patient.  Local hospitals specializing in cardiac care compatible with this technology are Lehigh Valley Hospital-Pocono, Orange Regional Medical Center, Wayne Memorial Hospital and all Scranton hospitals. 

The grant was administered by Emergency Medical Services of Northeastern Pennsylvania (EMSNP), the non-profit agency tasked with carrying out the Pennsylvania Department of Health’s EMS functions in Bradford, Lackawanna, Luzerne, Pike, Susquehanna, Wayne, and Wyoming Counties. Monies from the grant were supplied by the state’s Emergency Medical Services Operating Fund (EMSOF). This fund is used to provide funding to maintain, improve, and develop the quality of the EMS System within the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The EMSOF is routinely funded by surcharges added to tickets issued by police officers in the Commonwealth. 

Pictured left to right: DTVAC Lieutenant Dillan Miller and Paramedic Michael Travers, and EMSNP Board Members Mary Lou Corbett and Jim Mould.

DTVAC Receives Orr Smith Grant

 On October 7, 2019, Delaware Township Volunteer Ambulance Corps received a $10,000.00 donation from the Robert E. & Marie Orr Smith Foundation, a family-based foundation established to support the important work of community-based non-profits. All of the granted monies will be used to allow DTVAC to enhance the care provided to patients in eastern Pike County. 

(Pictured from left: Kyle Wright, Ambulance Squad, Robert Orr Jr., Orr Smith Foundation Trustee, Dillan Miller, Ambulance Squad). 

DTVAC Recognized for Dedication to Pediatric Care

Every year, over 75,000 children are transported by ambulances in Pennsylvania. This means that almost every seven minutes a child is being taken to the hospital with a potentially life-threatening medical condition. In order to ensure that EMS agencies within the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania are prepared for pediatrics, the Pennsylvania Emergency Medical Services for Children program, in partnership with the Department of Health, Bureau of EMS and the Pennsylvania Emergency Health Services Council, has created the Pediatric Voluntary Recognition Program to recognize EMS agencies that are willing to go above and beyond current requirements to deliver excellence in emergency medical care to children within the Commonwealth.

The Pennsylvania Pediatric Voluntary Recognition Program has recognized over 150 EMS agencies across the state, including Delaware Township Volunteer Ambulance Corps, located in Dingmans Ferry, PA.  The program consists of five levels that include pediatric equipment standards, ChildLine background checks, pediatric-related continuing education courses, community outreach programs, and car seat check programs. Delaware Township Volunteer Ambulance Corps is recognized at the Master Level, which means that the EMS agency has additional pediatric-specific medical equipment on their ambulances, requires EMS providers to complete ChildLine child abuse background clearances, required EMS providers complete four hours of pediatric-specific continuing education per year, and is actively involved in multiple community outreach programs. Delaware Township Volunteer Ambulance Corps became accredited under the Emergency Medical Services for Children Program in May, but it took over eighteen months of preparation to qualify for Master-level accreditation. Delaware Valley Emergency Services, Inc. assisted with training and Federal Bureau of Investigation criminal background checks for EMS providers. By participating in this program, Delaware Township Volunteer Ambulance Corps is demonstrating that they are truly prepared for pediatric patients and are ready to respond to any and all emergency situations involving Pennsylvania’s youngest citizens.

Delaware Township Volunteer Ambulance Corps is the only ambulance service in Pike County, and only one of ten in the EMS of Northeastern Pennsylvania EMS Region, to be recognized under this program. The EMS of Northeastern Pennsylvania EMS Region is the designated regional EMS council that serves Bradford, Lackawanna, Luzerne, Pike, Susquehanna, Wayne, and Wyoming Counties.

Delaware Township Volunteer Ambulance Corps is the primary ambulance provider for Delaware Township. Additionally, the ambulance service provides mutual aid coverage to municipalities surrounding Delaware Township. They provide both basic and advanced life support ambulance services. For more information or for volunteer opportunities with Delaware Township Volunteer Ambulance Corp contact (570) 828-2345 or email info@dtvac.org.

Delaware Township Volunteer Ambulance Corp’s newest addition to their fleet is now in-service and responding to emergencies in Pike County.  The 2008, Ford F-450 SuperDuty American Emergency Vehicles ambulance, was purchased used earlier this year from an ambulance dealer in Maryland.  The ambulance, unit 28-7 is equipped with dual rear wheels, 4-wheel drive, and On-Spot® chains to help battle the rough Pocono Winters. Additional features include a backup camera, LED lighting, and a Stryker Power Lift® system used to lift the stretcher into the ambulance with less back strain on EMTs and paramedics. Delaware Valley Emergency Services assisted in the Department of Health inspection process. Ambulance 28-7 will become the workhorse of the fleet and will rack up thousands of miles traveling to local and specialty resource hospitals over the next few years. (Photo credit: Sarah Ann Welsh Photography)

DTVAC Fighting Opioid Crisis

    On January 10, 2018, Governor Tom Wolf took a step forward in bolstering the fight against heroin and opioid addiction by signing a statewide disaster declaration to enhance state response, increase access to treatment, and save lives. The declaration is the first-of-its-kind for a public health emergency in Pennsylvania.  Under this disaster declaration, Delaware Township Volunteer Ambulance Corp. began utilizing new naloxone standing orders issued by the Pennsylvania Department of Health on January 18, 2018.  Naloxone (Narcan) is a life-saving emergency medication given to the victims of opioid overdose including heroin. Naloxone has been proven to reverse the effects of opioids on the brain and respiratory system in order to prevent death. With the new standing orders, once ambulance personnel revive a victim of an opioid overdose, ambulance personnel will then provide a spare naloxone dose with the “At-Risk Person” or with family members, friends, or other persons who are in a position to assist the At-Risk Person in the event of another opioid overdose. In addition to the medication, ambulance personnel will provide instructions on how to use the medication and will provide the patient a referral to drug counseling/treatment. Delaware Township Vol. Ambulance Corp. (DTVAC) will continue to “leave-behind” naloxone for the length of this disaster emergency as long as DTVAC can continue to receive the naloxone for free through programs from the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency or similar programs.

 

DTVAC’s Advanced Life Support Coordinator, Kyle Wright stated, “Unfortunately, it may be too late to revive a person from an overdose by the time an ambulance arrives at the patient and the patient ultimately dies from the overdose. Many of the overdose deaths we respond to are from opioid users who have been assisted by emergency medical services in the past. By enabling the patient’s family or friends to administer naloxone we can cut down on the time from a patient overdose to medication administration, truly increasing the patient’s chance of survival.” In a further effort to reduce the “overdose to naloxone administration time”, DTVAC is in the process of executing naloxone agreements with Delaware Township Volunteer Fire Company and Wild Acres Public Safety. Agreements will allow those agencies to legally possess and use naloxone. Under the agreement, restocking of naloxone will be provided at no cost to the agencies.  

 

In addition to electronic health records generated for every patient interaction, DTVAC will collect data on this program by completing a specific Department of Health survey every time this procedure is used. In addition, DTVAC will now report all naloxone administrations to the applicable federal law enforcement agencies.  Wright stated, “The cost of overdoes continues to put a strain on DTVAC’s budget; however, DTVAC has been the recipient of several allocations of Naloxone.” In 2017, the Pike County Alliance for Prevention Programs donated of several emergency doses of Naloxone to DTVAC. The Pike County Alliance for Prevention Programs received the funding for the naloxone from the Barbara Buchanan Endowment coordinated by the Greater Pike Community Foundation. And in 2018, DTVAC received several doses of naloxone to assist in treating opioid-related overdoses from a grant program coordinated by the Pike County Training Center and sponsored by the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency (PCCD), in collaboration with the Pennsylvania Department of Drug and Alcohol Programs, the Pennsylvania Department of Health and the Physician General. Pike County Training Center Training & Operations Manager, Jordan Wisniewski stated, “Naloxone has been distributed to over eight emergency service agencies in the County and we are ready to assist additional agencies, as needed”. Donations are still needed for other associated medical equipment and supplies used to respond to overdose emergencies. Online donations to DTVAC can be made at www.dtvac.org. 

 

DTVAC has also been focused on prevention efforts and has been a long-time supporter of the Pike County Reality Tour.  The Reality Tour® is a community-based drug prevention program designed as a single event to engage parents and children. It utilizes dramatic scenes balanced with coping skills to hopefully avoid drug experimentation by children. The Reality Tour is held four times a year, twice in the Spring and twice in the Fall, at the Milford Bible Church. To obtain a registration form visit  www.pikepa.org. or contact Jill Gamboni 570-390-9102. If you would like more information on this program or have any questions, contact DTVAC at (570) 828-2345 or email info@dtvac.org.