Dorchester County EMS has received accreditation from the Commission on Accreditation
of Ambulance Services (CAAS) for its compliance with national standards
of excellence. Dorchester County EMS is the 144th EMS agency in the
country to successfully complete the voluntary review process which included a
comprehensive self study and application and an on-site review and verification
by a team of national experts in emergency medical services (EMS).
The Commission, established in 1990, is a non-profit organization designed to
encourage and promote quality patient care in America’s EMS system. The primary
focus of the Commission’s standards is high quality patient care. This is
accomplished by establishing national standards which not only address the delivery
of patient care, but also the EMS agency’s total operation, its relationships
with other agencies, the community at large, and the medical community. The
Commission’s standards often exceed state or local requirements.
For Dorchester County EMS, this “journey to excellence” began in the summer of
2006. This “journey” involved a top to bottom review of every aspect of its operation.
Policies were established to formalize procedures that we in place and new
policies and procedures were put into practice to comply with CAAS standards.
Every member of the department embraced the process and the necessary
changes.
The on-site review team, which consisted of an EMS physician and two experienced
EMS administrators from accredited agencies, were complimentary of
the success of Dorchester County EMS and all said that they would be proud to
work for this agency.
Dorchester County Chairman Larry Hargett said, “Accreditation represents Dorchester
County’s firm commitment to our patients and community. The EMS department
continuously strives to do its best and we view accreditation as another
step towards excellence.”
Dorchester County Administrator, Jason Ward, said, “This is a culmination of a
lot of hard work on the part of EMS leadership and staff, and the commitment
that County Council made to improve public safety.”
“Our staff has been key to our successful completion of the process. CAAS accreditation
gives all members of the department a feeling of prestige and pride to
work in an accredited service,” said Doug Warren, EMS director. Everyone in the
department and many other departments along with County Council and County
Administrator Jason Ward, played valuable roles in our ability to meet the Commission’s
high standards. We have achieved accreditation. This achievement is
one part of our department’s continued commitment to excellence.”
Dorchester County Council recognized this accomplishment at its meeting on
Monday, May 21.
