Fallon Ambulance Awarded Equipment Grant from Department of Homeland Security

Fallon Ambulance Service is now better equipped than ever to handle a large-scale emergency such as an act of terrorism because the company has recently received grants for new equipment from the nation’s Department of Homeland Security in association with Boston Emergency Medical Services (BEMS) and the Metro-Boston EMS Council (MBEMSC).

Instituted as part of a greater effort to further enhance the region’s preparedness and response capacity, the grants will provide medical and personal protective equipment, including the recently dispatched Metro-STAR Central Communications Mobile Command Center.

“This grant further demonstrates the state’s confidence in our services,” said Sean Tyler, Fallon Ambulance’s Senior Vice President and Chief Operating Officer. “We are proud to be the emergency service provider that the surrounding communities count on.”

Fallon was chosen as the recipient based on stringent eligibility requirements instituted by the BEMS and MBESC. Applicants were required to: demonstrate licensing in EMS Region IV, as defined by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts; maintain continuous 24-hour advanced life support (ALS) service in at least one EMS Region IV community; and undergo Medical Director quality assurance reviews of all ALS calls.

Fallon Ambulance was also designated to house a large cache of medical equipment, which Fallon will store in a secure, climate-controlled environment and transport to the scene of a major incident.

Fallon Dispatches Metro-STAR Mobile Command

Metro-STAR Central Communications Mobile Command Center

Also obtained by Fallon in a grant from the Homeland Security Department, the Metro-STAR Central Communications Mobile Command Center, had its initial trial run this past July in Weymouth. This uniquely equipped vehicle is under the command of the Metropolitan Law Enforcement Council Special Tactics and Response Division (Metro-STAR), a consortium of 43 local police and sheriff’s departments located south of Boston.

The Mobile Command Center has the ability to communicate with more than 120 police agencies, federal government agencies, the Coast Guard, the Federal Aviation Agency, the State Police and the Department of Public Safety. In addition, satellite links provide self-sufficient phone services, Internet and fax, along with the radio communications. The vehicle has 360° video capability reaching up to 100 feet in the air, with six portable cameras that can be deployed up to two miles away.

Metro-STAR offers participating communities an experienced, highly-trained and disciplined tactical resource package comprised of local police officers from each member community. The division utilizes the strength of 150 officers, including: a Regional Response team used primarily for search and rescue and controlling civil disobedience; a Special Weapons and Tactics team; a Crisis Negotiation team; Tactical Emergency Medical Support (TEMS); police dogs; and a command post staff.

Said Tyler, “We take great pride in serving with the highly trained specialists who are part of Metro-STAR, and we look forward to continuing to provide the support and services that keep our communities safe.”

New Fallon Contracts with Six Massachusetts Towns, Gillette Stadium

Fallon Ambulance has always taken great pride in playing an important role in our community. And with six new contracts, that role is certain to remain a prominent one for years to come.

In recent months, Fallon has been awarded new contracts with the towns of Braintree, Brookline, Dedham, Quincy, Weymouth, and Fallon’s hometown of Milton. Fallon Ambulance has been contracted by the towns of Braintree, Brookline and Dedham since 1998, Quincy since 1997, Weymouth since 2001, and Milton since 1991. So these communities were very familiar with everything the family-operated ambulance service has to offer.

Under the new contracts, Fallon Ambulance will continue to be responsible for all 911 responses for the six towns, providing 24-hour Advanced Life Support (ALS) paramedic service, and work closely with the towns’ Police and Fire departments and hospitals.

According to a Milton Town Administrator, “Fallon gets the highest marks from all the communities they serve. Being their hometown, we are likely to be the best judge of their business character, and we are highly satisfied with the service they offer. They have always given the community additional benefits with their contract; in fact, this year their services are increasing at no cost to the community. There was no need to entertain the idea of another service for our town.”

“They are unequalled,” exclaimed Brookline Town Administrator, Richard Kelleher. “Their response time and quality service has secured their positioning in our town. In addition, the defibrillator program and in-service training for public safety personnel would be lacking without their persistent attention and dedication. Brookline’s vote of confidence is with Fallon.”

Fallon Ambulance Named Official Provider For Gillette Stadium; Awarded With Long-Term Contract

When Fallon Ambulance was first contracted to provide ambulance services during New England Patriots games at Foxboro Stadium, Dick MacPherson was the head coach of the team, Hugh Millen opened the season at quarterback and red was still the team’s primary color.

A lot has changed in the past 12 seasons, but Fallon Ambulance has remained a constant, providing ambulance services for hundreds of events at Foxboro Stadium from 1992 until 2001. Since 2002, their consecutive streak of services has continued at Gillette Stadium, one of the world’s premier sports and entertainment venues. Entering the 2004 season, Gillette Stadium officials extended the agreement, giving Fallon Ambulance Service official provider status for all stadium events.

“Fallon Ambulance Service has been an important member of our medical team for over a decade,” said Jim Nolan, Vice President of Operations. “We are glad to extend our partnership for another three seasons.”

Under this agreement, Fallon Ambulance Service will continue to work closely with the Foxborough Fire Department, as well as the medical staff from Brigham and Women’s Hospital, to provide unsurpassed emergency medical services.

“We are proud to receive the designation as the Official Ambulance Service Provider for Gillette Stadium,” said Peter Racicot, Senior Vice President of Business Development for Fallon Ambulance Service. “It is a remarkable facility and we take great pride in providing our services for every major event at the stadium.”

Gillette Stadium, with a capacity of 68,756, is home to the NFL’s two-time Super Bowl Champion New England Patriots, as well as the MLS’s New England Revolution. In addition to the football games and soccer matches, Fallon Ambulance will also provide their services for all major concerts, in addition to various other stadium events.

Preventable Scooter Injuries on the Rise

By Sean Stentiford, Director of Clinical Services, NREMT-P

As scooters continue to ride their way into popularity, injuries have soared along with sales, causing the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission to issue a warning. Emergency room treated injuries related to scooters increased 700 percent last summer with more than 4,000 scooter-related injuries treated in hospital emergency rooms in August alone. Nearly 90% of the injuries are to children under 15 years of age.

The best prevention for injuries is the use of protective gear, which can cost less than $35. The most obvious protective gear is the helmet. As with bicycling, a helmet is essential in preventing injuries to all parts of the head. It must be buckled and fit snugly to be effective, and it should be rated or approved by a nationally recognized standard. Elbow and kneepads offer protection in falls. Fractures and dislocations account for nearly one third of scooter-related injuries.

As with any sport, practice is important, and children need to know how to operate scooters properly. Children should begin at a speed and at angles that they are comfortable with and avoid daring tricks and stunts until they are really ready to handle them. Riders will have more trouble stopping a scooter than they do a bike with brakes, and they need to learn to stop with the rear fender brake by lowering one foot to the ground. The rules of the road call for scooters to yield to pedestrians and announce their intentions to pass.

Keeping equipment well-maintained is essential. Before climbing aboard, riders need to check out all the bolts, steer tube extension and handlebars to make sure they’re securely fastened.

Fallon Donates First Ambulance Ever Used In Haiti Town

Fallon has provided the first-ever ambulance to be used by the northern Haiti town of Plaisance. The vehicle, which Fallon recently retired from active duty and refurbished for its second life, is already in service in Haiti, providing medical transportation and treatment to this community of 70,000 people that is served by two health centers.

Prior to the ambulance arriving in Haiti, people seeking medical assistance were forced to find their own way to the health centers, often relying on public transportation. Medical conditions in Haiti leave much to be desired, according to Bernadette Obas, a Boston resident of more than 30 years, and native of Plaisance, Haiti.

Conditions in Haiti were so bad that a group of ten individuals in New England formed the non-profit group Le Comite de Placentin de Boston, dedicated specifically to providing help to the residents of Plaisance.

The group consists mainly of Haitian residents who now live in Boston and the Rhode Island area. Bernadette Obas said that the organization has undertaken a number of fundraisers on behalf of the Plaisance residents and has also worked closely with the non-profit IMAC (International Medical Equipment Collaborative) to supply much-needed medical equipment to the island.  “We first learned of IMAC through an article in the Pilot newspaper, and then of Fallon Ambulance through some friends,” she said. “The people from Fallon Ambulance are so generous to help us by providing this ambulance. It's a first for our town, and it will save so many lives.”

IMAC assisted Ms. Obas' group with medical equipment; and, when Fallon Ambulance learned of the need for an ambulance, they met with Ms. Obas and made arrangements to secure a vehicle.

“We looked for the first available ambulance coming out of active service and set it aside for the group,” said Peter Racicot, Senior Vice President of Business Development at Fallon Ambulance.  “Our company has had the opportunity to donate ambulances to a number of needy causes, including remote regions of Poland and, now, Haiti. There is nothing more satisfying to know that an ambulance that provided continuous service in our primary coverage area can have a second life in an area where it is so desperately needed.”