The Bearpond Fire Department has been notified that the Vance County Emergency Medical Services ambulance will no longer be stationed at its location, which has prompted some in the community to wonder why.
A statement issued Wednesday from the office of Vance County Manager Renee Perry said that the EMS made the decision based on a number of factors, from call volume and response patterns to personnel burnout and fatigue. It did not, however, mention where the ambulance would be relocated.
In a post Tuesday on its social media page, Bearpond Fire Department leaders said they didn’t know why the change was being made, but added “we feel the need to address this as we have already been flooded with calls about rumors as to why.”
The press statement included information that Vance County EMS had made the decision “only after a thorough evaluation of staffing levels, emergency call volume, response patterns and the overall operational needs of the countywide EMS system.
“It is important for our residents to understand that VC EMS is a countywide emergency medical service,” Perry was quoted in the statement. “Our responsibility is to provide emergency medical care to every resident of Vance County, regardless of where they live. Although an ambulance is no longer permanently stationed at the Bearpond Fire Department, we remain fully committed to responding to emergencies throughout the entire county, including the southern end of Vance County.”
According to the statement, the emergency medical call volume has increased significantly within the City of Henderson and the northern portion of Vance County over the past several years.
“As demand for emergency services has grown, additional resources and personnel have been needed in these areas to maintain timely and effective emergency medical response.”
It continued, saying, “At the same time, EMS experienced numerous occasions when staffing levels were insufficient to consistently keep an ambulance in service at the Bearpond station. Maintaining a unit that could not be reliably staffed was not a sustainable or efficient use of available personnel and resources.”
Additionally, crews assigned to the EMS Main Station have assumed the majority of emergency responses for both the City of Henderson and the northern portion of the county, the statement said. “This sustained increase in workload has placed significant demands on frontline personnel, contributing to fatigue and burnout. Realigning ambulance deployment allows EMS to better match resources with community needs while supporting the health and well-being of the personnel who provide these critical services.”
In its post, Bearpond FD dispelled any notion of discord between it and Vance County EMS or government leaders.
“At no point has there ever been a disagreement between our Department and Vance County EMS or Vance County Government. Also, at no point was there any discussion from our Department to the Vance County government about asking for more money due Vance County EMS utilizing our building and utilities.”
The post concluded with, “We hate to see them leave our fine community but as with most things, needs change with time and we wish VC EMS the absolute best with their future vision.”
