$500K program a "crystal ball" for emergency dispatchers?

[letmesleep]

I don't want to sound negative by saying this because the theory is interesting, but I'm curious to see what the yearly stats turn out to look like. There are tons of positioning systems out there, and they all have their bugs, but this one seems to be more "high tech" (for lack of a better term) than anything I've ever seen. It’s been a while since I have worked in an area that moved trucks based on potential calls.

The one thing that I have a hard time believing is that they are going to add 2 years to the life of the trucks. The mileage is still going to be there, isn't it?

[Richard B the EMT]

I will just make a bitter comment here: If the system sees 20 minutes into the future, if it starts sending a bunch of units into an area near an airport, or towards a tornado shelter that can house vehicles...

[Niftymedi911]

Well, the program sees 20 min into the future based on 10 yrs of past data. So if we've had 5 or 6 plane crashes in the same year and same time near the airport (which we've only had 2 or 3 (priavte aircarft, no commercial) in the past 5 yrs), and we're getting sent to the same general area. I'll just make sure to have my extra jump kits ready......

The thought process behind the milage and over usage of vehicles is based on our current stand-by policy. When two trucks which cover a response zone are out running calls, we have to send another truck to that area to cover the zone to maintain response requirements. Based on the new theory or program, if two trucks are out and a zone left uncovered, but according to the program no call will be dropping in the area and it does not reccomend a unit for stand-by, you don't go. Taking that same theory for one truck, apply it to our fleet of 37 trucks and it adds up in a yrs time of numerous cost savings for fuel, wear/tear on our vehicles, and wear/tear on employees.

The county in which we live and work in believes in providing the best service possible to the residents and vistors. If that means we're supplied with the lastest in vehicles, equipment, and technology to accomplish the job and be finacially responsible and efficient, then that's what we're given. Our PCR program enables us to collect for this year, 18M out of 25M billed. In which essentially means our service pays for itself, and we're not private! We've been able to keep the priavtes out of our county....

Edited January 2, 2010 by Niftymedi911

[Richard B the EMT]

Well, the program sees 20 min into the future based on 10 yrs of past data. So if we've had 5 or 6 plane crashes in the same year and same time near the airport (which we've only had 2 or 3 (priavte aircarft, no commercial) in the past 5 yrs), and we're getting sent to the same general area. I'll just make sure to have my extra jump kits ready......

5 crashes in the same year? OMG! In 35+ years, I've only been to 4 plane crashes over all.

So, as to predicting plane crashes, are we now employing Allison Dubois, or others with similar abilities of ESP-Premonition?

If anyone asks, Eastern Airlines Flight 66, JFK, 1975; US Airways Flight 1010, LaGuardia, sometime in the 1980s; American Airlines Flight 587, Belle Harbor, Queens County, New York City, November 12, 2001, a half mile from my residence; and a single engine plane in forced landing on the beach, Atlantic Beach, Nassau County in, I think 2004. Actually, per members of my old VAC, a crew member taking a mid afternoon nap woke up with a start, and declared "We're going to have a plane crash this afternoon." 2 hours later, he was a part of one of our 3 crews working the Eastern crash.

[stcommodore]

I'm thinking out loud here but say for your call volume you have 30 trucks overworked, constantly relocating or responding from a distance calls, etc and you add 20 trucks to make a total of 50. But in doing so a percent of those units are going to do dramatically less runs then others, thus cost more money, man hours, etc where is the middle ground?

We all know that call volume doesn't change when you add units its just spead out more. So from the prespective of you guys working dynamic deployment does the cost of "probably" having a unit closer to the next call worth the side effects? At my part time suburban job we run a fourth "bls float" truck in the day along with three als units. Between 07-2300 we are expected to operate in a SSM style to cover calls within the local and it appears to do so a majority of the time. But when your one squad in an entire county doing so its far from the norm. I think its a matter again of call volume and this department isn't busy and half the time you relocate you don't have another run.

[Kiwiology]

SIREN was orginally designed as a pilot scheduler for airlines. It was developed in New Zeland and London for their EMS programs

You spelt New Zealand wrong but I'll let it slide

Everyone has a hybrid form of SSM, regardless if they want to believe it or not.

Except us, I've spent many hours at the comfy station watching telly and sleeping on the couch.

[Dustdevil]

FAIL!

Welcome to 1985, Lee County.

[streethealer535]

Well, the program sees 20 min into the future based on 10 yrs of past data. So if we've had 5 or 6 plane crashes in the same year and same time near the airport (which we've only had 2 or 3 (priavte aircarft, no commercial) in the past 5 yrs), and we're getting sent to the same general area. I'll just make sure to have my extra jump kits ready......

The thought process behind the milage and over usage of vehicles is based on our current stand-by policy. When two trucks which cover a response zone are out running calls, we have to send another truck to that area to cover the zone to maintain response requirements. Based on the new theory or program, if two trucks are out and a zone left uncovered, but according to the program no call will be dropping in the area and it does not reccomend a unit for stand-by, you don't go. Taking that same theory for one truck, apply it to our fleet of 37 trucks and it adds up in a yrs time of numerous cost savings for fuel, wear/tear on our vehicles, and wear/tear on employees.

The county in which we live and work in believes in providing the best service possible to the residents and vistors. If that means we're supplied with the lastest in vehicles, equipment, and technology to accomplish the job and be finacially responsible and efficient, then that's what we're given. Our PCR program enables us to collect for this year, 18M out of 25M billed. In which essentially means our service pays for itself, and we're not private! We've been able to keep the priavtes out of our county....

Thanks for the great Information its nice to hear from someone who is actully in the system!

I hope this lives up to the hype it could realy benifit everyone.

~Street