957.08 VEHICLE INSPECTIONS AND STANDARDS.
(a) The City of Findlay Police, Fire and Health Departments shall conduct annual inspections of any vehicle licensed to operate as ambulance/EMS vehicles in the City of Findlay. Such inspections must take place no later than 30 days before a vehicle is to be put into service pursuant to this Chapter, or before an existing license is to be renewed for the succeeding year. It shall be the responsibility of the applicant to contact the Mayor’s Office to arrange any such inspection.
(c) Any vehicle to be licensed as an emergency ambulance operating in the City of Findlay shall conform to current Ohio and federal specifications for emergency ambulances. If any of the standards recited below conflicts with existing State or federal specification, the strictest standard shall apply.
(1) Any licensees or applicant for license shall be certified by the Ohio Ambulance Licensing Board [OALB]. Proof of current licensure is required.
(2) At all times when it is to operate, on a rotating basis, within the corporate limits of the City of Findlay, the provider shall have a fleet consisting of, at minimum: one rescue ambulance unit; four ambulances; and one trailered rescue boat or other watercraft.
(3) All units described in this Section shall be permanently based inside the corporate limits of the City of Findlay, and exclusively assigned to respond to calls within the City of Findlay and Hancock County if such agreement with the county exists, unless the City expressly permits, in writing, an alternative arrangement.
(4) Two of the five required rescue and ambulance units shall be designated as Primary Units at any given time when the licensee is on duty to respond to emergency calls within the City limits. The other three units shall be considered as Standby Units. The Rescue Ambulance unit may be considered the Primary Unit.
(5) Both of the Primary Units must be equipped with Advanced Life Support Equipment.
(6) Four of the vehicles required in this Section shall be no more than seven year in age. The fifth unit for Standby purposes may be up to 10 years old. The Safety Director may waive, in writing, this requirement if, upon inspection by the Police, Fire, and Health Departments, a waiver is indicated.
(7) Licensure and annual inspection responsibility lie with the Police Chief, the Fire Chief, Health Commissioner and the Safety Director. In addition to reviewing required documentation, the inspectors shall determine the condition of each vehicle to operate under license granted by the City, each vehicles equipment; and each vehicles medical and other supplies.
(d) Minimum Vehicle Standards. The following are the minimum construction and basic equipment standards to be met by any applicant for licensure to operate an emergency ambulance in the City. The city may, in its sole discretion, from time to time require additional construction and equipment standards.
(1) Every vehicle must be clearly identified with the name of the legal entity operating the ambulance as a business. Nameplates commonly inserted in window brackets shall be acceptable. Every vehicle shall be clearly marked with “911” in letters a minimum of 9 inches in height.
(2) A strongly constructed partition between the driver and patient compartments, and having a sliding door opening, shall be required of all ambulance units.
(3) Any vehicle used as an ambulance shall have a minimum of four doors: one door at the rear of the vehicle; one door on the right side of the patient compartment; and one door each on the driver and front passenger sides.
(4) Enclosed storage shall be provided for the clean storage of extra linens, blankets, medical and other supplies.
(5) Warning lights and siren are required on each ambulance. The lights shall be red and mounted so as to be visible from all directions. All such devices shall be of the type currently approved by the Ohio Department of Public Safety, Bureau of Motor Vehicles.
(6) Each ambulance unit shall have a heater that adequately and safely heats the patient compartment.
(7) All windows on every ambulance shall be safety glazed, as approved by the Ohio Department of Public Safety, Bureau of Motor Vehicles, and as defined at §4513.26 of the Ohio Revised Code.
(8) Each ambulance unit shall have adequate shock-absorbing devices to aid patient comfort and safety.
(9) Each ambulance shall be equipped with approved safety belts in the driver’s compartment.
(e) Communication Standards. Every ambulance shall be equipped with a mobile two- way radio system controlled by a base radio station operated for emergency purposes on an FCC- approved EMS frequency with MARCS capabilities.
(1) The licensee ambulance/EMS provider[s] shall be responsible to provide dispatch for services within Findlay and Hancock County, Ohio. The provider[s] must have a published local telephone number to be monitored 24 hours a day when the licensee is in the response rotation.
(2) Each ambulance shall be capable to communicate directly by radio to the Blanchard Valley Hospital Emergency Department on Frequency 155.340.
(3) Ambulance/EMS personnel shall employ all means available to communicate with the Blanchard Valley Hospital ER Department as to the number and condition[s] of the patient[s] being transported.
(4) Each ambulance shall be equipped with a portable radio on the ambulance frequency.
(5) Each ambulance shall have the capability of communicating with the Findlay Police Department Dispatch Center through direct radio link.
(6) Each ambulance shall be equipped with a GPS navigation system which will determine exact locations to which the ambulance is called to respond.
(7) Any licensed ambulance/EMS provider shall not advertise local 10-digit private telephone numbers as an “emergency telephone number”. All requests for emergency response to an emergency as defined in Section 957.02(a)(7) of this chapter shall be requested through the “911” emergency system located in the Findlay Police Department dispatch center or the Hancock County Sheriff’s Office dispatch center.
(Ord. 2008-101. Passed 12-16-08.)