About Us
Bellefonte Emergency Medical Services (EMS) is a
non-profit 501(c)3 organization located in
central Pennsylvania and offers a variety of
services to our community. We currently are
licensed by the Pennsylvania Department of
Health (PaDOH) as a Basic Life Support (BLS)
ambulance service operating three ambulances.
We staff at least one ambulance 24/7 with a
scheduled on-duty crew of 2 experienced
Emergency Medical Technicians (EMT).
Additionally, we operate three para-transit vans
providing transportation for persons needing
wheelchair or litter transportation to and from
medically related appointments or when
discharged from the hospital.
Today’s
staff includes over 25 volunteer and 20 career
personnel providing emergency service to the
Boroughs of Bellefonte, Milesburg, and
Unionville along with all or portions of Spring,
Benner, Boggs, Marion, Howard, Union, and Huston
Townships. We also respond to incidents in
surrounding communities when requested to assist
neighboring EMS organizations. Our primary
response area totals approximately 210 sq.
miles, much of which is agricultural or forest
land, with a year-round population of 20,000.
Our
annual operating budget, approximately $900,000
in 2012, is funded predominately through
fee-for-service by third-party insurance and
patient reimbursement, in addition to our annual
subscription membership, and donations from
community members. We do not receive tax-based
or municipal financial funding from the
communities that we serve. Our annual
membership subscription provides about 5% of our
annual revenue.
Bellefonte EMS is a member of the Ambulance
Association of Pennsylvania and the Centre
County Ambulance Association.
History
Bellefonte EMS history dates back to 1949 when
the Logan Fire Company purchased their first
ambulance to provide service to the residents of
Bellefonte. At that time, very little training
or specialized equipment was available to the
volunteer members staffing an ambulance. Over
the years, ‘first aid’ training became available
along with a variety of additional equipment to
aid in the treatment of patients before arriving
at the emergency department. One of the first
Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) courses was
offered in Pennsylvania around 1970. The 1980’s
saw the disappearance of the Cadillac ambulances
and the introduction of the first EMS Act in
Pennsylvania mandating minimum equipment,
staffing, training, and vehicle design
standards.
In
1994, Bellefonte EMS became an independent
emergency service agency with the separation
from the Logan Fire Company. This separation
allowed the volunteer members, and newly hired
career personnel, to focus on providing prompt,
high quality emergency medical services to the
community. Paid career staff became necessary
as the volume of emergency incidents rose to a
level beyond what a totally volunteer staff was
able to reliably handle alone.
In the
next several years, our organization grew to
absorb the communities previously served when
the Citizens Hook & Ladder Fire Company in
Milesburg ceased providing ambulance services in
1997.
Bellefonte EMS purchased our first and current
station on Phoenix Avenue in 1998.
