EMSA reports ACE reaccreditation, engagement survey baseline and steady response performance in Tulsa

Representatives of the Emergency Medical Services Authority (EMSA) presented their biannual update to the committee, reporting an international reaccreditation for the Tulsa 9‑1‑1 communications center, the first Gallup employee engagement baseline for EMSA staff, results from MCare enrollment marketing, and a third‑party resident satisfaction survey.

Accreditation and staff engagement EMSA said its Tulsa 9‑1‑1 communications center earned reaccreditation as an Accredited Center of Excellence (ACE) from the International Academies of Emergency Dispatch, a designation held by a small fraction of dispatch centers nationwide. EMSA described the reaccreditation as evidence of protocol‑based dispatch, quality assurance, and system integrity.

EMSA also reported results from a May Gallup employee engagement survey (437 respondents, roughly 66% of staff) with an engagement mean of 3.74 on a five‑point scale. EMSA leaders said they have set a goal to reach a 4.0 score by May 2026 and a longer‑term stretch goal of 4.25, and described steps already taken to address focus areas: recognition, encouraging staff feedback and clear pathways for advancement.

MCare enrollment and marketing outcomes EMSA reported that a recent marketing push around the MCare program resulted in net increases in enrollment interest: 431 utility customers moved from opt‑out to opt‑in arrangements while 304 opted out in the same period. Marketing efforts included billboards, social ads and Spanish‑language materials; EMSA said its approach yielded more than 400,000 billboard impressions and drove over 2,000 clicks to the city utilities web page.

Resident satisfaction survey An independent survey of 500 registered city voters conducted for EMSA found that 34% rated ambulance service excellent and 41% good; overall brand favorability among respondents who knew the EMSA name was 73% favorable (43% strongly favorable). The consultant noted respondents with direct EMSA experience tended to rate service more positively than respondents without direct experience. EMSA officials said monthly patient experience surveys and public dashboards provide ongoing metrics for response compliance and patient satisfaction.

Performance and finances Council members asked about response‑time compliance and payor mix. EMSA staff said priority‑one response compliance regularly exceeds the 90% ordinance standard and cited recent months at or above 95% for the eastern division. On funding questions, staff said that temporary federal payment extenders (impacted by a government funding lapse) create short‑term exposure but that they presently forecast no service interruptions even if extenders lapse; staff also described standard customer assistance and hardship review processes for self‑pay cases.

Ending EMSA representatives said they will continue to publish response, financial and satisfaction dashboards publicly and to bring regular updates to council. Committee members commended the ACE reaccreditation and asked that EMSA provide additional neighborhood‑level detail on utilization and outcomes in follow‑up materials.