The City of Higginsville took over the ambulance service in the
fall of 1970. At that time, volunteers with basic first aid staffed the
ambulance and provided care to the patients. The early days of
notification that a call had been received were by telephone. So the
attendants either stayed by a phone or continually called the
coordinator with the new number. The ambulance staff responded this way
until April 1973 when the City received enough donations to buy the
first pagers to be used by the staff.
The City's ambulance had
been running out of an old service station located at 19th & Main
until July 1973. It was at that time the old Bennett garage located at
19th & Walnut was purchased. The ambulance, along with the fire
department, would operate out of that facility until the fall of 1998
when both departments moved into a new fire and ambulance station
located at 211 West 19th. It is a structure designed for those
operations and both departments have been truly thrilled with the
facility.
We currently have three type III units. All three units are advanced life support equipped.
In
1973, the City hired their first full-time employee to oversee the
operation. He became a paramedic and remained in that position until
late 1979. During this time, the call load for our community hovered
around 35 calls per month. However, that was beginning to change.
Beginning
in December 1979, a new director was hired. And as the calls increased
so did the additional requirements from the State. As a result,
additional staff was added. At the present time, we have 5 full-time
paramedics, 2 full-time EMT's, and 16 part-time/volunteer staff. With
all that this department does, it takes all of us to make it run this
smooth. At present, we average around 83 calls per month.
We
offer a wide range of training for both our own staff as well as the
community. Some of the classes offered are CPR, first aid, EMT
certification, ACLS, and basic aid training for kids.
Higginsville
EMS is active in the community with its many training programs that are
offered both to the general public as well as within the school
system. We provide ambulance coverage for many of the sporting events
in our service area as well as providing health screening to the
community on a regular basis.
The service is a city
owned-operated service that covers over 10 square miles serving rural
and urban areas 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
We are a
department that is very interested in providing the best care possible
for our patients. We strive to stay abreast of recent changes and
update our equipment as needed, necessary and possible. We have
excellent community support and have received several appreciation
awards over the years.