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Resident describes 5‑hour ambulance delay; county EMS says ambulances were staffed and protocols updated after the incident
Summary
A local resident told the Atchison County Commission that an ambulance transfer on May 19 took five hours to arrange; county EMS leadership said ambulances were staffed that night, investigated the case and met with hospital staff afterward to establish clearer transfer protocols.
A woman who brought her husband to the commission’s public comment period on July 22 said her husband experienced shortness of breath and chest pain on May 19 and that Amberwell Hospital in Atchison waited five hours for an ambulance to transfer him because, she said, “there was no paramedics on duty.” She said the delay required the couple to wait at the hospital while clinicians made care decisions and that the experience raised concerns about rural emergency transport capacity.
“When he was experiencing shortness of breath and chest pain…we had to wait 5 hours for an ambulance because there was no paramedics on duty,” the resident said during public comment.
County EMS leadership responded in the meeting. Corey (the county’s EMS representative) said county crews were available on May 19. “At the time of your transfer, we were fully staffed,” he said. He told the commission the county’s first‑out ambulance was dispatched at 5:17 p.m. and cleared that call at 5:59 p.m.; there were no further county ambulance calls that night, he said.
Corey said the county investigated the specific transfer and that the hospital’s medical staff, citing patient privacy, would be the appropriate party to explain why county resources were not used on that transfer. “I can’t speak about your conditions on camera even though you’re here,” he said, explaining limits imposed by health‑information rules.
Corey told commissioners he met with Amberwell and Mosaic hospital staff after the May 19 incident and that those meetings led to clarified protocols allowing advanced EMTs to perform some interfacility transfers when clinically appropriate, rather than waiting for a paramedic to arrive from outside the county. “We have better educated their staff on what an advanced EMT is capable of, and we’ve also come to some medically solid decisions…so we’ve established some newer protocols,” he said.
Commissioners and county staff said they would continue to monitor availability and staffing and encouraged dialogue among the hospital, county EMS and state officials to maintain timely transfer options for patients.
Why it matters
Residents said the delay highlighted the potential consequences of limited rural EMS resources during severe weather or high system demand. County EMS officials said available ambulances may still be prioritized to 9‑1‑1 emergency calls and that interfacility transfers sometimes must wait for a transfer crew, which is why clearer hospital‑EMS protocols were recently agreed.
Ending
Commissioners asked staff to continue monitoring service levels and to report back if staffing changes affect response capability. The resident thanked the commission for the opportunity to raise concerns and said she hoped the meetings between EMS and hospital staff would reduce future delays.
