Emergency Medical Services (EMS)

Policies

Minimum Emergency Medical Dispatch policies are established by the Milwaukee County Emergency Medical Services Council, and the Milwaukee County Paramedic Training Center. The Fire Department may modify these minimum requirements in favor of increasing levels of care provided or decreasing response times. The Fire Department is responsible to assure that Emergency Medical Services personnel capable of providing First Responder care with Automatic External Defibrillation arrive within a 4-minute response time to 90% of incidents within our primary jurisdiction, Advanced Life Support Services personnel must be deployed to provide for arrival within an 8-minute response time to 90% of incidents within our primary jurisdiction.

Staff

All uniformed personnel are licensed Emergency Medical Technicians, also trained in defibrillation, epinephrine administration and "KING" laryngeal tube insertion. All members staff fire companies capable of providing EMS. The Department operates one Advanced Life Support (ALS) unit, staffed by licensed paramedics. Fifteen members of the Department are licensed paramedics. EMT's and Paramedics provide sophisticated medical care at the scene of an emergency and while en route to an appropriate medical facility. Physicians provide 24-hour medical control from the Milwaukee County Paramedic Communications Center.

Services

The South Milwaukee Fire Department provides two types of Emergency Medical Services: Advanced Life Support (ALS, Paramedic Unit) and Basic Life Support (BLS) (Fire Rescue Units). The ALS Unit is staffed by two paramedics. The BLS Units are each staffed with two Firefighter-Emergency Medical Technicians, who are Defibrillator certified. All members of the department are certified as EMTs with many of those members certified as Paramedics. The ALS and BLS Units serve as fire companies and are part of a routine response to fires and service calls in addition to responding to requests for emergency medical services.