Res 85-016RESOLUTION NO. 85-016
A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL
CF THE CITY OF POWAY, CALIFORNIA,
R~QUESTING THE SAN DIEGO COUNI~ BOARD CF SUPERVISORS
EXAMINE THE COUNi~-WIDE ~%~_R%GENCY MEDICAL SERVICES
CO~4UNICATION SYSTt~{ AND IMPLIW~/Ff MASTER PLAN
WHEREAS, the Poway City Council represents the interests of both public and
private agencies providing paramedic-level prehospital emergency medical care in
San Diego County; and
WHEREAS, the County of San Diego, hereafter referred to as "county", is an
entity of governm-=nt which has both legal and moral responsibility for planning
and coordinating emergency medical services within the county; and
WHEREAS, all paramedic provider agencies operating in san Diego County are
highly dependent on radio communications to meet the requirements of state law
and local regulations, and to provide advanced life support services to ill and
injured emergency patients in out-of-hospital environments; and
WHEREAS, the County owns, maintains and operates most of the radio com-
munications systems and equipment used by paramedic provider agencies in their
delivery of emergency medical services; and
WHEREAS, continuing increases in population and other factors have resulted
in a steady increase in demand for prehospital emergency medical services, and
steadily increasing need for paramedic provider agencies to utilize radio com-
munications in m~cting the increasing de~and for their services; and
WHR. REAS, the County' s radio c~l~l%unications system and equipment for
~ergency ~dical services was not designed nor constructed to meet the demands
currently being placed on it; and
WHEREAS, the County's radio cc~anunications system has a limited potential
for ~cting predictable increases in demand for service as the population base
increases; and
WHEREAS, failure to promptly initiate a cc~prehensive study of cc~m%uni-
cations needs, and to design and commence acquisition of a new ~mergency medical
services radio cc~nunications system inevitably will result in deficiencies in
the quality and availability of prehospital e~ergency medical care and transpor-
tation; and
WHEREAS, continuing efforts to alter or add to the existing system will
further stress that system beyond its design limits, will cause confusion and
inaccuracy in the delivery of prehospital emergency medical services, and may
result in defective patient care with the potential for injury or death and con-
sequent tort liability; and
Resolution No. 85-016
Page 2
h%IEREAS, the County's own staff, while competent and capable, and despite
co~xaendable performance in efforts to make the existing system and equi[i~ent
meet the needs of emergency medical services providers, lacks the time, resour-
ces, and independent perspective necessary to plan and design the badly needed
replacement system.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED as follows:
1. That the County should acknowledge that the existing radio com-
munications system and equipment which is being used for prehospital
emergency medical services presently is operating beyond its design
capacity and has limited potential for being modified to meet the needs
of prehospital emergency medical services providers in the future.
2. That the County Department of General Services, the County Department
of Health Services, and the County Board of Supervisors prcmptly should
authorize and provide funding for employment of an independent con-
sultant to evaluate present and future radio cc~nunications nccds of
prehospital emergency medical services providers, and to design a
c~t,~unications system that will meet those needs in the foreseeable
future.
3. That the authorized consultant be directed to consider all relevant
factors in estimating future ncc~s, including but not limited to the
following:
a. Land use plans of all local govermments to determine projected
growth of population and projected distribution of population in
the various regions or areas of the county;
b. The number of emergency medical services mobile units which will
be required to meet the future needs of the projected population,
including the anticipated numbers of calls for service, the poten-
tial for interference, and radio signal propogation charac-
teristics and topographic obstacles which may result frcm future
distribution of the projected population;
c. New and evolving technology in radio cc~anunications, including
alternative frequency bands, innovative methods for conveying
information fr~n and to remote field units by electronic me~_ns,
and the potential that a physician surplus will permit the place-
ment of physicians on ambulances, thus altering or reducing the
need for radio transmission of telemetered electrocardiograms.
Resolution No. 85-016
Page 3
e
That the County Department of General Services, the County Department
of Health Services, and the County Board of Supervisors should consider
this matter one of urgency and take ~%~'L~adiate action to initiate the
planning process and to budget for consultant services, and purchase
and installation of a state-of-the-art ~mergency medical services com-
munications system that will ~ct the public's needs well into the 21st
Century.
PASSED, ADOPTED AND APPROVED, by the City Council of the City of Poway,
California, at a regular meeting thereof this 5th day of March, 1985.
ATTEST:
Marjori~ K~ Wahlsten, City Clerk