Local News in Brief : Emergency Expert Hired

The Los Angeles City Council took a step toward overhauling the city’s Emergency Medical Service system Wednesday by authorizing the hiring of a Salt Lake City expert to train fire dispatchers.

The action authorized Fire Chief Donald O. Manning to negotiate a contract with Dr. Jeff Clawson, medical director of the Salt Lake City Fire Department, to install Clawson’s protocols, a way to screen calls for assistance to determine how serious they are.

The protocols are a key element in recommendations by the Fire Commission, Fire Department and the city administrative office to improve response times to the 200,000 medical emergency calls received each year in Los Angeles.

By using the protocols, dispatchers can determine when to send paramedics, who are trained to handle life-threatening emergencies, or firefighters trained as Emergency Medical Technicians (EMTs) to deal with less serious calls.

Also Wednesday, the council postponed a vote on a proposal to spend $1.5 million for six additional paramedic ambulances, but approved a plan to buy defibrillators and equip every fire engine in the city with one of the resuscitation devices.