St. Clair EMS defends itself against complaints

LIBERTY, Ind. – St. Clair Emergency Medical Service doesn’t always transport patients using lights and sirens, a practice some Union County residents are questioning.

Union County Board of Commissioners president Paul Wiwi asked how the decision on lights and sirens is made during the commissioners’ meeting Monday. There also are concerns about how quickly the service reaches patients, commissioners said.

Nathan St. Clair, owner of St. Clair EMS, said using lights and sirens depends on the severity of the patient’s condition. He said it’s a “Midwest thing” to assume an ambulance will always transport under lights and sirens.

“If they’re not critical or in danger of death, we don’t use lights and sirens. When you turn on lights and sirens, other drivers do dumb stuff and sometimes cause accidents. They’ll hit the gas and run to try to get out of the way,” St. Clair said. “As soon as we turn on those lights and sirens, we’re liable.”

Arrival time in response to a call depends on distance and conditions, St. Clair said. The company has purchased new laptop computers so its crews are using the same mapping system as the dispatch office, St. Clair said.

“It takes 20 minutes to get to Egypt Hollow,” St. Clair said. “It’s 10 to 15 minutes for most other calls. We made it to Kitchel and the hospital in 30 minutes last night.”

St. Clair EMS became Union County’s ambulance provider in September 2014, after the previous provider, Rural/Metro, left most of Indiana. The county is paying St. Clair EMS $200,000 this year for ambulance service.

Commissioner Paul Wiwi said he wants to listen to ambulance calls and see the response time firsthand. St. Clair said he’ll provide Wiwi with a radio.

Union County’s ambulance service was busy during the holiday weekend, St. Clair said, with all state camping facilities at full capacity. Three ambulances were stationed and staffed in Liberty and a fourth was on standby, St. Clair said. Franklin County sent an ambulance to Heritage Hills Campground to cover a call there, St. Clair said.

There were several accidents over the holiday, but the most serious was a two-vehicle collision Friday afternoon on Dunlapsville Road, St. Clair said.

Andrea Cowell, 17, of Versailles was taken to University of Cincinnati Medical Center by helicopter Friday and was released Monday, Union County Sheriff Dale Dishmond said. The girl’s mother, Ellen Cowell, was taken by ambulance to Reid Hospital, Dishmond said. The driver, Thomas Cowell, attempted to make a U-turn and drove in front of an oncoming car, Dishmond said.