HEMPFIELD COMMUNITY AMBULANCE ASSOCIATION

(Serving the community since 1966)

 

DISCLAIMER: I am no longer employed by Hempfield, in fact they no longer truly exist having merged into a multi-company organization. I have not lived in nor worked in Lancaster County since August 1999 and can only provide this as a history of what I knew to be true at that time. I have been informed that Hempfield did merge with Columbia Ambulance and formed a company with a new name and logo. They added territory, rigs, and personnel and I heard more companies are joining in this venture. I wish them luck and hope they continue to serve the communities with the same caring and skill shown in the past.


To be honest, I am a relative newcomer to the company. I started in 1995 as a volunteer and was hired as part time compensated staff October 30th 1996. We were started as a company when the need was recognized by the community for an ambulance service for the local residents. We had one of the Cadillac style "load and go" vehicles back then, eventually progressing to where we are now:3 box rigs, 1 van ambulance (used mostly for transports) and currently 4 wheelchair vans for medically necessary transports. The rigs are manned by AT LEAST 2 EMT's at least one of whom is rated as an Emergency Driver (allowed to go lights and sirens), and the 2nd person must be rated as at least a Duty Officer (able to run the call and ride alone invite back with the patient). a crew can consist of anywhere from 2 to 4 people and can have anything from 1 driver, 1 DO and 1 attendant and 1 trainee (new EMT still under observation) to a crew of 4 full DO/Drivers. We also allow 1 observer per crew (as a 3rd or 4th NOT a 5th person), and the observer need not be an EMT simply someone interested in learning more about what we do. Observers are NOT allowed to touch patients but are still bound by our confidentiality rules. Observers may run up to 5 shifts(to be raised if they get no calls) before they need to decide to join the company or to no longer run calls.

Our Original Board of Directors at our incorporation as non-profit company, Dec 14, 1966 were as follows:

Currently we serve the community with 2 MICU rigs (MICU-Mobile Intensive Care Units staffed by one EMT-Basic and one EMT-Paramedic level minimum)Monday through Friday 0600-2200, then One MICU from 2200-0600 in addition to a BLS crew if the volunteers staff one. In addition to this, we have an on call system for our wheelchair vans to allow us to serve our area and contracts with 24 hour service which includes bringing people home from the hospital emergency rooms after they have been released.

More Coming in the future....

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OK, Here's some of that "More"!

We will soon be part of a joint venture with Columbia Ambulance.  The new company has already formed its new Board of Directors and will be called Susquehanna Valley EMS.  (OK, I think that's the name, I'll get back to ya on that one!)  We've already started trading personnel as needed (mostly medics) and our rigs cover for each other as well as a shared wheelchair van program.   The merger has gone very smoothly from my understanding thus far and the future looks brighter than ever!  I personally think that the new company will serve the ever growing and changing needs of our community even better than before.

 

Email me with your comments and ideas!

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