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Ambulance takes load off paramedics

Tampa Fire Rescue spends an extra $15,000 on one equipped for people up to 1,000 pounds.

By ABBIE VANSICKLE
Published May 25, 2006

TAMPA - A few times a month, Tampa emergency workers transport extremely heavy patients to hospitals.

Until now, when someone was too large for a standard ambulance, the rescue workers sometimes had to use flatbed trucks, paneled vans or wreckers to carry the patients.

"We were very limited in the past," rescue Chief Nick LoCicero said.

It wasn't the most dignified or the safest option.

That's why Tampa Fire Rescue recently bought a specialized ambulance. From the outside, the ambulance looks similar to any other, but fire officials say the vehicle - equipped with a hydraulic lift gurney, a wider mattress and a roomier interior - will make a big difference, both to emergency workers and to heavy patients.

"It's more respectful. It's safer," LoCicero said.

Emergency workers receive two to three calls a month for extremely heavy patients, Capt. Bill Wade said.

Now, emergency workers can respond with the specialized ambulance. After the patient is loaded onto the gurney, a paramedic can press a button and the gurney lifts on its own.

If a patient is too large to fit on a standard-size gurney, paramedics can fold down bars on the gurney's sides and open flaps to expand it.

The gurney can be loaded into the ambulance using two black and yellow ramps that attach to the back of the vehicle and rest on the ground. The ambulance is also outfitted with a winch that can be hooked to the gurney if necessary. It will be used for all sorts of calls, not just for the heaviest patients, officials say.

The specialized gurney and vehicle can handle patients up to 1,000 pounds, twice that of a standard ambulance.

It cost about $175,000, $15,000 more than a standard ambulance, according to fire officials. Wade estimated it would last about five years.

The vehicle can be used by other agencies, including the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office, if one needs to transport a heavy patient, Wade said.

Pinellas County's ambulance service, Sunstar Emergency Medical Services, has two specialized ambulances, according to Pinellas emergency workers.

Fire rescue has had the ambulance for a couple of weeks, but it hasn't been used to transport a heavy patient, Wade said.

Fire Rescue Lt. Michael Fox, a field training officer, said he was excited to hear about the new ambulance.

The patients will be much more comfortable, he said.

"It's easier for the patients, and it's easier for us," he said.

Abbie VanSickle can be reached at 813 226-3373 or vansickle@sptimes.com.

[Last modified May 28, 2006, 10:32:27]