Corona virus protocol
Don’t call a local ambulance before dialing a help center
Not feeling well? Have a high fever and dry cough? Think you might have COVID-19?
Your first call should not be 911, according to Mark Schroeder, EMS coordinator for the Edgar Fire Department. Instead, call a COVID-19 help line:
_ Aspirus Health Care, 1-844-568-0701.
_ Marshfield Clinic, 1-833-978-0649.
_ Ascension Medical Group, 1-833-978-0649.
Schroeder said medical professionals at these COVID-19 call centers will ask questions to try and determine whether you have the illness or something else, like the flu.
Depending on the answer, he said, that will inform ambulance crew members what level of precautions they should take if they are needed to take you to the hospital.
Schroeder said ambulance crew members have a protocol for taking contagious people, like COVID-19 patients, to the hospital. This is nothing new, he said. The Edgar ambulance workers deal with tuberculosis yearly and, in the past, they have transported patients during the H1-N1 (swine flu) outbreak and the Ebola epidemic.
“We are taking the same precautions,” said Schroeder, “although we are paying special attention these days.”
Schroeder said Edgar ambulance crews follow Center for Disease Control (CDC) guidelines. That means ambulance EMTs wear N95 masks, goggles, a liquid-impervious gown and gloves.
“We are at a low risk of contracting the virus if we take the proper precautions,” he said. Patients, too, Schroeder said, must wear masks during their ambulance ride.
He said the Edgar ambulance has an adequate supply of safety equipment for now.
“We are not a high volume service,” he said. “We have about 250 ambulance calls a year. So, we are sitting pretty good for supplies.”
Schroeder said following all of the CDC guidelines will help everyone survive the COVID-19 pandemic. “Social distancing and good cough etiquette will be essential to get through this,” he said.
Schroeder said the Edgar ambulance crew will provide the same service to patients during the corona pandemic except for one thing.
“We will be asking a lot more questions,” he said.
