Medstar ambulance parked outside of Burton Fire Station No. 2
Medstar ambulance parked outside of Burton Fire Station No. 2

The City of Burton announced today​ that it​ has entered into an​ agreement ​to provide consistent EMS service ​for its​ residents and visitors. The ​agreement​ is​ with Medstar, a not-for-profit EMS agency that serves several Michigan communities, ​and ​is identical to agreements the agency has with communities throughout lower Michigan.

“The delivery of EMS care in the City of Burton is an important part of my commitment​ to​ the highest level of services for residents and visitors,” Burton ​Mayor D​u​ane Haskins said. “Meds​tar has a reputation for ​quality clinical care, patient satisfaction, and community accountability. I look forward to the consistency they will bring to our city, their partnership with our police and fire departments, and regular reporting to my office and our ​City Council.”

The agreement will be formally announced today at a ​Medical First Responder training program being held at the Burton ​Fire ​Department on Belsay Road​. The news conference will be at 6 pm at Bentley High School, 1150 N Belsay Road in Burton. In the event of rain, the location will be Burton Fire Station Number 2, 1320 S. Belsay Road.

The ongoing training is provided by Medstar​ for all area fire departments providing emergency medical ​first responder ​service and included Medstar’s medical helicopter demonstrating landing zone safety and patient handling for critical trauma patients.

The City of Davison, Davison Township, and Richfield Township each signed service agreements with Med​s​tar last week.

“The EMS system in Genesee County has been challenged with accountability and consistency for a long time,” said Brian Flewelling, Chief of the Davison-Richfield Fire Department. “Recent incidents have demonstrated the need for communities to secure accountable EMS service and the ability to have direct insight into how that service is provided. After evaluating Med​s​tar’s performance in other communities, I’m confident ​our partnership will improve the care and service in the communities served by my department, as well as the engagement with our local leaders.”

“On behalf of the over 900 men and women ​who provide care and service every day throughout Michigan, we look forward to serving ​the communities represented here today,” said Kolby Miller, Med​s​tar Chief Executive Officer. “My career began in Genesee County in 1988, and I’m proud to see Meds​tar working with local leader​s to improve the EMS system today and into the future. Through local service agreements, we can deliver consistent resource deployment and coverage, as well as deeper integration with ​community and public safety leaders, without subsidy or financial risk from the communities served.”

Med​s​tar is a not-for-profit organization owned by the McLaren Healthcare ​Corporation, ​Ascension​-Michigan, and the Henry Ford ​Health ​System​. The agency provides 911 EMS service for communities in Wayne, Oakland, Macomb, Lapeer, Bay, and Genesee counties, ​as well as critical care, air medical, and interfacility transport throughout the ​region​. Medstar has been accredited by the ​Commission on ​Accreditation of ​Ambulance ​Services ​(CAAS) ​since 1998 and ​is one of only five EMS agencies in Michigan accredited by the Commission on the Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (CAAHEP.)

The service agreements are based on a response time reliability threshold of eight minutes, 59 seconds, which is the national standard for EMS performance agreements. Miller said that the 8:59 threshold generally produces between four- to six-minute average response times. The agreement also provides quarterly reporting response times, clinical data, safety metrics, and patient satisfaction survey results. The agreements provide direct communication with ​community leaders regarding any ​issues identified, community service programs, and education being offered within the communities served. ​

Med​s​tar​’s Genesee County headquarters​ is in Mundy Township, and ambulances will be positioned throughout the communities to ensure ​safe and ​appropriate response times. ​”By deploying ambulances to cover ​contiguous ​sections of geography, rather than the center of high volume areas, we will improve response times in less populated areas, while ensuring ​safe and effective response times in the more populated cities or ​areas of townships,​” Miller said.

About Medstar
Medstar is Michigan’s most integrated 911 EMS and mobile healthcare provider, serving more than 190,000 patients annually throughout lower Michigan. Created in 1993 by two local hospitals committed to quality EMS, the nonprofit agency serves communities in nine counties. Healthcare stakeholders include Ascension-Michigan, Henry Ford Health System, and the McLaren Healthcare Corporation. For more information, visit www.medstarambulance.org

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Contact
Anne Hein
ahein@medstarambulance.org 
586-980-1043

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