Shortage of paramedics, EMTs slows response to rural emergency calls in Georgia

The shortage of health professionals in rural America often includes emergency medical technicians and paramedics, and that means emergency situations can become even more critical in many rural areas.

In Georgia, a statewide shortage of emergency medical workers has hit rural counties the hardest, reports the Athens Banner-Herald. From 2005 to 2006, the number of licensed emergency medical workers dropped by 5 percent.

James Matthews, the head of emergency medical services in Oglethorpe, had to cut short an interview with reporter Lee Shearer because a call came in and he had to hop in the ambulance to lend a hand. "As director, I shouldn't have to get on a truck," he told Shearer. "But plenty of mornings (when someone calls in sick), I can't find anybody." There even have been times when Matthews has received a call and did not have a crew to respond. He has managed to find nearby county answer the call, but he said, "It's been close, though."

Ernie Doss, public safety director for Lincoln County, said he had found that about one-third of the medic positions were not filled in his county and the 12 surrounding it. Doss said some days he doesn't even have a paramedic on duty. "What that means is, if we had a patient that needs emergency medication, we can't give it on the scene," he said. "It's a delay in advanced life support." (Read more)

To read a Department of Health and Human Services study on emergency services in rural areas, go here. The 2006 study examines the role volunteers play in rural areas and suggested some models for success, such as blending services and sharing them among agencies.