KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Ambulance response times provided by the Kansas City Fire Department confirm what City Council members say that they have suspected all along – that response times are slowest in the Northland.
The Public Safety Committee asked for the stats nine months ago but top brass for the fire department says it took until Wednesday to provide them. The goal is for ambulances to arrive at an emergency within 9-minutes of dispatch 90% of the time. From August of 2012 to October of 2012, the fire department met their nine minute goal 68% of the time.
In the Central District the figure was 87%. On the Eastside the number was 83%, while on the Southside it was 74%.
“Our pilot programs are underway and those should provide some relief to the system,” said Acting Fire Chief Paul Berardi.
The KCFD has recently added an extra ambulance to the Northland and says from now on paramedics will ride on pumper trucks, which often arrive before an ambulance does.
City Councilman John Sharp is still critical of the department’s new dispatch protocol, where 9-1-1 operators ask more questions before deciding if it’s worth sending an ambulance.
“On average on life-threatening emergencies they’re taking a minute and half to dispatch,” said Sharp. “Their own national fire protection association says you should dispatch within 60 seconds 90% of the time so they’re no where near meeting their own national organization standards.”
Berardi says his department needs about four months to determine if its pilot programs arae improving response times or not.
