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EMS
Five finalists named for EMS chief post
City Manager Spencer Cronk has named five finalists to advance to a second round of interviews for the position of chief of Austin-Travis County Emergency Services. The national search produced 37 applications from candidates vying to fill the vacancy created…
EMS • By Amy Smith • Jan 6, 2022
Moving encampments off public streets has made it more difficult to provide medical support to Austin’s unhoused
The camping ban set back years of progress local emergency services made in serving people experiencing homelessness, making it harder and more expensive to respond to an increase in emergency calls, according to a top emergency services official. The ban…
EMS • By Samuel Stark • Dec 14, 2021
Search for new EMS chief still under wraps
As with last month’s meeting of the Public Safety Commission, Assistant City Manager Rey Arellano had little to report regarding the nationwide search for a new chief of Austin-Travis County Emergency Services. At Monday’s commission meeting, Arellano reported there were…
EMS • By Amy Smith • Dec 7, 2021
EMS makes progress on billing backlog
Austin-Travis County Emergency Medical Services is chipping away at a billing backlog that started with a demanding learning curve associated with a new patient records system implemented in 2019. Additional billing delays carried over into 2020 as city staffers started…
EMS • By Amy Smith • Nov 16, 2021
Pflugerville area voters making decisions about EMS service
Travis County commissioners Jeff Travillion and Brigid Shea are urging voters they represent in Pflugerville and its extraterritorial jurisdiction to vote in favor of two propositions on today’s ballot that would expand the geographic boundaries of Travis County Emergency Services…
EMS • By Jo Clifton • Nov 2, 2021
Alter, Tovo find more funds for EMS
As a result of budget amendments provided by City Council members Alison Alter and Kathie Tovo, Austin-Travis County Emergency Medical Services will gain a new deputy medical director and three paramedic practitioners beginning in November. In addition, three EMS division…
EMS • By Jo Clifton • Aug 18, 2021
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EMS Association president says medics are 'exhausted' and 'hopeless' as Covid cases surge
Emergency medical services in Austin are facing a huge crunch as Covid-19 cases surge. Selena Xie, the president of the Austin EMS Association, said EMS workers are significantly understaffed at a time when their call volume is skyrocketing. “Medics are just…
EMS • By Ashley Lopez, KUT • Aug 17, 2021
Alter finds funding for more EMS, fire services
When City Council Member Alison Alter heard that the Loop 360/Davenport Fire and EMS Station would not be opening in Fiscal Year 2022 as planned, she thought of how savings from that station could be used to help the Austin…
EMS • By Jo Clifton • Aug 4, 2021
EMS leader recounts medics' harrowing week during freeze
First responders are still in recovery mode as they plan for the next severe weather event, such as the freeze that gripped Austin in mid-February, and any other unforeseen disaster that may occur. “Our medics’ stories should be heard,” Austin…
EMS • By Amy Smith • Jul 20, 2021
Fire/EMS station construction on pace despite pandemic
In 2017, a service needs analysis of the Austin Fire Department led to the City Council-sanctioned creation of a six-year plan to construct and staff five fire/EMS stations in the areas of most need: Del Valle/Moore’s Crossing, Travis Country, Loop…
EMS • By Seth Smalley • Jul 20, 2021
Committee reviews EMS response times
Jasper Brown, chief of staff for Travis County Emergency Medical Services, spoke before the Public Safety Commission on Jan. 4 to report the quarterly incident response times for the county. The goal response time for all priority-one calls – a…
EMS • By Seth Smalley • Jan 11, 2021
Texas first responders need equipment to tackle Covid-19
Two-thirds of emergency service district first responders reported they have been unable to procure a sufficient amount of the necessary personal protective equipment since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, according to a study by the Texas State Association of…
