By Bill Bates
NEWS Correspondent
Residents in Mount Ephraim no longer have to wait for a mutual aid ambulance if they call 911 during the daytime hours. Monday, September 4th marked the first day of the first full week of having daytime Emergency Medical Services personnel provided by Virtua Health. Mount Ephraim\’s EMS has signed a contract with Virtua that gives them staffing from Monday thru Friday from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. including all applicable holidays. The Virtua Health employees are all NJ State certified Emergency Medical Technicians that go through continuous training throughout the year. These EMT\’s will be staffing Mount Ephraim\’s ambulances and will be stationed at the MEPRI Ambulance garage to the rear of the MEPRI building on Kings Highway.
PHOTO BY BILL BATES
DUTY CREW RESPONDS – Virtua Health EMT Laurie Bernstein (left) and EMT Walt Woodward (right) respond to a Cardiac Emergency call that came in as I visited the crew at the MEPRI Ambulance building on Friday afternoon. This was one of eight calls that the duty crew had during their 12 hour day shift in Mount Ephraim.
The Mount Ephraim Police Reserves Incorporated Emergency Medical Services, also known as the MEPRI EMS, has been serving the borough of Mount Ephraim and its neighboring communities since 1945. They have seen many changes over the years and by far this is one of the best decisions the organization has ever made.
\”This is an exciting change that the officers of our organization have worked very hard to bring for the residents of the Borough of Mount Ephraim\” said MEPRI EMS Chief Joe Lutz. \”I want to personally thank each and every member for their effort that they have put forth since we have become licensed\” he also added. Members have done everything from replaced light bulbs to mounting fire extinguishers in both rigs, which is one of the many requirements by the state. The members did an awesome job in making the trucks look great for the recent inspection.
Both of MEPRI Ambulances recently met the requirements for the state to issue a state license to the organization. One of the main requirements is that the ambulance must have a minimal of two EMT\’s on board in order to respond to any emergency call. This license also allows the organization to \”soft bill\” the patients\’ insurance company for services rendered. If the patients insurance company only pays a percentage of that bill and not the entire amount, the patient nor the insurance company are responsible for that outstanding balance. In essence, MEPRI EMS only receives the amount that the insurance company is willing to pay. If a patient does not have insurance, the patient is not responsible for the expenses incurred. The money that is paid to Mount Ephraim EMS from the insurance companies will be more than enough to pay for the services that are provided by Virtua Health. This means that there will be no tax burden on any resident to have these services in place.
The last time Mount Ephraim had daytime EMS coverage was almost 15 years ago when at that time only one adult had to work to support the household. Many members were homemakers and those who worked the second shift. As time passed, more and more families were starting to rely on that second spouse for additional income to cover the basic costs of living. \”At one time we had approximately 12 to 15 members that were available to turn the wheels during the daytime hours. We never even had any trouble getting a second ambulance during those hours as well\” said retired member Marietta Corson who ran with the MEPRI ambulance for over __ years. \”Frank & I lived right up the street and we always had a good response time to the ambulance garage because we were so close.\” \”As more of our members returned to work during the daytime hours, it was harder and harder, year after year, to get the ambulance to respond.\” \”Eventually we had to turn about 75 percent of the daytime calls over to mutual aid to handle\” she also explained.
An average call, from the time the pager goes off to the time you return to the ambulance building, can be anywhere from 40 minutes to an hour and a half, depending on the nature of the call. It is not easy to find many people who are willing to give up that time, not to mention all of the state mandated training that is required to keep your Emergency Medical Certification up-to-date from year to year. Thankfully, this expense is provided to each member by the NJ State Volunteer Training Fund. This allows members to complete the required training for free.
\”We have been very fortunate, Mount Ephraim has a great group of young adults that are able to volunteer their time\” said EMS Captain Dan Walker who is a career EMT in a neighboring town that works a rotating schedule like most other professionals in his field. Several of the current volunteer members are from neighboring towns, but when they are on call, they are required to be in town and at the ambulance building. Mount Ephraim\’s current volunteers provide coverage to its town and surrounding communities when called upon from the hours of 6 p.m. to 6 a .m. on Monday thru Friday. Members have an option from covering a 6 hour shift or if they wish they may cover the entire 12 hours.
Mt. Ephraim still continuous its rotation \”Duty Weekend\” with Haddon Heights and Audubon Borough. One town covers an entire weekend from 6 a .m. on Saturday morning thru 6 a .m. on Monday morning. Each squad covers a weekend which responds to calls in all three towns and has the next two weekends off, until their rotation comes up again. The average number of calls on a \”Duty Weekend\” averages from about 13 to 18. These three ambulance organizations have been sharing this coverage for almost two years now and have had much success and praise from its members, local officials, and residents as well.
\”We have been waiting for this day to come and it has finally here\” Said MEPRI President Frank Corson. Frank has been serving with the Mount Ephraim Police Reserves Incorporated organization for more than 25 years and has been president of the organization for the past __ years. The members of MEPRI EMS are looking forward to the many changes as the organization continues to blossom to new levels.
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