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Commission approves EMS response plan; agrees to pilot shorter dispatch intervals for higher-tier calls
Summary
The commission approved an updated emergency medical services response plan and agreed to test shortening dispatch intervals for Delta and Echo call types (proposed 3 and 5 minutes) while keeping higher-priority tiers at current timing; implementation will be tested and revisited later.
Montgomery County’s Fire and Rescue Commission approved an updated emergency medical services response plan after a focused discussion on dispatch timing and how to reduce patient wait times on higher‑priority calls.
Speaker 7 presented the revised plan, saying it was reworded to be inclusive of all departments and to meet Virginia VMS inspection requirements. The primary policy change debated was shortening CAD dispatch intervals; several commissioners and agency representatives raised concerns about coverage for remote or ‘long‑shot’ stations that dispatch from home.
Speaker 6 explained a technical detail: “the 5 minutes in CAD is actually a 6 minutes because we give a minute for tones to go out,” and argued the commission should consider how the timer and tone delays interact with response availability. Speaker 9 recommended easing into any change and suggested asking agencies at a 3-minute mark whether they have the call covered during the initial transition.
The commission agreed to a phased approach: trial shortening Delta and Echo calls to 3 and 5 minutes respectively while leaving Alpha/Bravo/Charlie intervals at their current 5/10-minute cadence. Speaker 1 moved to approve the response plan with that approach, and the motion carried by voice vote.
Staff said shift supervisors retain an override capability for deteriorating patients and emphasized the need for agencies to proactively report out‑of‑service periods so dispatch can route calls correctly. The commission directed staff to confirm CAD configuration options to support tiered timing and to revisit the intervals later in the year based on operational data.
The commission’s action remains subject to technical verification in the county’s CAD and coordination with agencies before system-wide implementation.
