For the purpose of this article, the following definitions shall apply unless the context clearly indicates or requires a different meaning.
AMBULANCE. Any ground, air or water vehicle which is approved by the Oklahoma Commissioner of Health pursuant to the Oklahoma Emergency Response Systems Development Act in accordance with rules and regulations promulgated by the Oklahoma State Department of Health (OSDH), and which is designed and equipped to transport a patient or patients and to provide appropriate on-scene and enroute patient stabilization and emergency medical care as required. Vehicles used as AMBULANCES within the Guthrie EMS District (GEMS), as defined herein, shall meet such standards as may be required by the OSDH for approval, and shall display evidence of such approval at all times.
AMBULANCE RESPONSE TIME STANDARD. A standard which creates a fixed measurement by which to evaluate and ambulance service’s effectiveness.
AMBULANCE SERVICE. Any person or organization, governmental or private, which is licensed by the OSDH to provide levels of medical care based on certification standards promulgated by the OSDH, and operates one or more ambulances, as defined in this section, for purposes stated herein.
AMBULANCE SERVICE PROVIDER. Any licensed public or private ambulance service that agrees to provide emergency and non-emergency medical services and licensed emergency medical personnel to residents of the GEMS District in accordance with the terms and conditions of an emergency ambulance services license or in accordance with a mutual aid agreement, as those terms are defined in this section.
EMERGENCY CALL. A request for emergency ambulance service by or for a patient.
EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERVICES (EMS). The following pre-hospital and inter-hospital services:
(1) ACCESS AND COORDINATION. The answering and processing of telephone requests from the public for ambulance or first responder services, and including EMS dispatching, emergency and routine; the giving of medical pre-arrival instructions to callers by telephone;
(2) EMERGENCY MEDICAL RESPONDER SERVICES. Those emergency services, excluding transportation, which are performed by a Emergency Medical Response Agency (EMRA) certified by OSDH;
(3) MEDICAL TRANSPORTATION. Ambulance services, both emergency and routine, including patient assessment, transportation, and medical procedures performed on-scene, enroute, during inter-facility transport, or at an emergency receiving facility when performed at the request of the receiving physician.
GEMS DIRECTOR. Person holding the position of Fire/EMS Chief for the City of Guthrie, Oklahoma.
GEMS DISTRICT. The licensed district boundaries currently on file with OSDH for GEMS.
GUTHRIE INDEPENDENT SCHOOL DISTRICT I-1 EMS DISTRICT. The 522 emergency medical service district, as defined in and having all powers, duties and privileges provided under the Oklahoma Constitution, Art. X, § 9C, that was created by vote of the qualified voters of the Guthrie Public School District on September 21, 1982, is governed by the EMS I-1 Board of Directors, and is established to provide ambulance services to the Guthrie Public School District.
GUTHRIE EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERVICES (GEMS). Guthrie Fire Department/EMS members who are certified by the OSDH in accordance with the Oklahoma Emergency Response Systems Development Act and in accordance with rules and regulations promulgated by the OSDH; are so designated by the Medical Director, to perform emergency medical services, at the scene of an incident requiring emergency medical services, including transport, under the direction and control of, and pursuant to protocols established by the Medical Director.
MEDICAL DIRECTOR. The licensed physician appointed by the City of Guthrie, or by contract with the ambulance service provider, to perform the duties and responsibilities granted and ascribed to the Medical Director herein. The Medical Director may be an employee of the city in the absence of an ambulance service agreement, but is otherwise an employee of, or contractor with, the licensed ambulance service provider so designated by the ambulance service agreement.
MEDICAL PROTOCOL. Any diagnosis-specific or problem-oriented written statement of standard procedure, or algorithm, promulgated by the Medical Director as the medically appropriate standard of pre-hospital care for a given clinical condition.
MUTUAL AID AGREEMENT. a written agreement between the holder of an emergency ambulance service license issued pursuant to this code, and a neighboring primary provider of emergency medical
service approved by the Medical Director as to its quality of care and medical accountability, whereby the signing parties agree to lend emergency aid to one another subject to conditions and terms specified in the agreement.
PATIENT. An individual who is ill, sick, injured, wounded, or incapacitated, and who is in need of, or is at risk of needing, medical care or assessment during transportation to or from a health care facility.
PERMIT. Any of the documents required to be obtained from the city pursuant to this code and as recommended by the Medical Director, as given herein.
(1) Ambulance service license—Emergency and routine transport. Ambulance services responding to emergency calls within the GEMS District shall be required to obtain an emergency ambulance service license. Ambulance services responding to requests for routine transport service shall be required to obtain a routine transport ambulance service license.
(2) Personnel certification required. All emergency medical personnel shall be required to obtain personnel certification, and such certification shall be valid for a period of two years. Personnel may be certified as emergency medical responder, emergency medical technician, emergency medical technician-intermediate, advanced emergency medical technician or paramedic in accordance with certification standards established by the OSDH/National Registry of Emergency Medical Technicians.
(3) Ambulance vehicle permit required. Every ambulance vehicle operated by an ambulance service shall, subject to inspection and recommendation by the Medical Director be issued an ambulance vehicle permit by the city.
PERSON. Any individual, firm, association, partnership, corporation, or other group or combination acting as a unit.
PRIMARY PROVIDER OF EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERVICES. A public or private ambulance service organization which has been designated by one or more governmental entities to provide emergency ambulance coverage throughout a defined geographic area.
RESPONSE TIME—AMBULANCE. The actual elapsed time between receipt by the 911 dispatch center(s) of the “essential information” needed to initiate dispatch, and the arrival of a permitted ambulance or mutual aid ambulance (approved by the Medical Director) at the scene of the incident. For purposes of this provision, the “essential information” shall include location, callback number, chief complaint or nature of problem and, if the initial location information was obtained from 911 data base, confirmation that the patient’s location is the same as that of the caller, or the patient’s actual location.
ROUTINE TRANSPORT/TRANSFER CALL. A request for ambulance service by or for a patient whose apparent condition, at the time the call is received, presumptively meets the criteria for a non-emergency transport/transfer.
SPECIAL EVENTS AMBULANCE STANDBY SERVICE. The positioning of an ambulance and crew at the location of a publicly or privately-sponsored event.
SYSTEM STANDARD OF CARE. The written body of standards, policies, and protocols governing all clinical aspects of the EMS system, which is approved by the city. As used in this context, SYSTEM STANDARD OF CARE is a comprehensive term including:
(1) INPUT STANDARDS includes but is not limited to personnel certification requirements, in-service training requirements, equipment specifications, on-board inventory requirements, and other requirements which the system must fulfill before receipt of a request for service;
(2) PERFORMANCE STANDARDS includes but is not limited to priority dispatching protocols and pre-arrival instructions, medical protocols, standing orders, response time standards, protocols governing authority for on-scene control of patient care, and other performance specifications describing how the system should behave upon receipt of a request for service ice; and
(3) OUTCOME STANDARDS includes but is not limited to target survival rates for certain narrowly defined presenting problems or presumptive diagnoses, such as witnessed cardiac arrests involving patients whose medical histories meet defined criteria. OUTCOME STANDARDS are results the system intends to achieve by meeting its input and performance standards.
ZONE. Geographic area extending 25 miles outward from the legal boundary of the GEMS District.
(Ord. 3286, passed 3-15-16)