Medical Response Pilot Program
Medical Response Pilot Program Provides More Direct Medical Response to Emergency Calls
In September 2021, the Boxford Select Board, along with Chief Geiger and the Public Safety Departments, launched a Medical Response Pilot Program. The Fire Department piloted a new shift for a firefighter in an effort to improve medical response to emergency calls.
The Fire Department is a combination workforce consisting of both career and on-call firefighters. The Town’s two fire stations are staffed Monday through Friday from 7:00 AM to 5:00 PM by career firefighters. On evenings and weekends, emergency calls are handled by on-call members who arrive at the station to retrieve equipment prior to their response. The department functions under a 3-tier response which includes police, fire, and ambulance. The police are often the first professional responders to arrive at any emergency.
The pilot program creates overnight and weekend shifts for a dedicated firefighter who is required to respond to all emergencies from their home directly to the emergency scene in a department vehicle. The vehicle contains the same medical equipment, including medical drugs, as our current rescue vehicles. In addition, the vehicle carries fire equipment to assist home owners with fire alarms or carbon monoxide detection.
The pilot program has been evaluated on an ongoing basis by the Fire Department, the Communications Department, and the Select Board. The Town Administrator's Office has made three presentations to the Boxford Select Board, in January 2022, in July 2022, and in February 2023. All are linked below.
The pilot was funded with federal funding allocated to the Town through the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) through June 2023. At May 9, 2023 Town Meeting, voters approved Warrant Article 5, which increased the Fire Department's FY24 budget by $75,000 to fund the program.
The Select Board is creating the Emergency Response Advisory Committee to continue assessing the Town's emergency response program and to develop other strategies to improve patient care and response times: boxfordma.gov/EmergencyResponse
Additional information is also available on the Boxford Fire Department webpage: https://www.town.boxford.ma.us/fire-rescue-ems
| Attachment | Size |
|---|---|
 February 2023 Report | 1.21 MB |
| January 2022 Report | 132.53 KB |
| July 2022 Report | 177.76 KB |
| January 2021 Response Time | 42.42 KB |
| February 2021 Response Time | 42.22 KB |
| March 2021 Response Time | 41.8 KB |
| April 2021 Response Time | 41.84 KB |
| May 2021 Response Time | 42.16 KB |
| June 2021 Response Time | 42.31 KB |
| September 2021 Response Time | 45.93 KB |
| October 2021 Response Time | 47.18 KB |
| November 2021 Response Time | 46.78 KB |
| December 2021 Response Time | 47.23 KB |
| January 2022 Response Time | 42.95 KB |
| February 2022 Response Time | 42.05 KB |
| March 2022 Response Time | 42.26 KB |
| April 2022 Response Time | 42.08 KB |
| May 2022 Response Time | 42.26 KB |
| June 2022 Response Time | 42.24 KB |