Thursday, April 25, 2024 | St. Lawrence County, NY
By JIMMY LAWTON OGDENSBURG -- Ogdensburg Volunteer Rescue Squad gave a brief presentation Monday at the City Council before offering appreciation to the city for its support. OVRS Director of …
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By JIMMY LAWTON
OGDENSBURG -- Ogdensburg Volunteer Rescue Squad gave a brief presentation Monday at the City Council before offering appreciation to the city for its support.
OVRS Director of Operations Ken Gardner offered city council the opportunity to ask questions regarding the squad and its operations after issuing an annual report.
Council commended Gardner for the thorough report and said they enjoyed the tour of the squad’s facility earlier this year. That meeting helped the city reach a shared services agreement with the squad, which includes fuel-purchasing benefits in exchange for rescue service among other things.
Councilor Daniel Skamperle said the meeting opened his eyes to the issues faced by the squad.
Gardner said the meeting was enlightening for both sides.
During the 2017 calendar year, Volunteer Rescue Squad was requested to respond to a total of 2,613 calls for service.
This resulted in 2,399 actual patient care reports, according to the squad’s annual report.
OVRS averaged seven calls a day, 232 calls a month, with the busiest month being August.
The OVRS responded to 1,708 in the City of Ogdensburg, 273 in the Town of Oswegatchie, 129 in the Town of Lisbon, 112 in the Village of Heuvelton, 41 in the Town and Village of Morristown, 40 in the Town and Village of Waddington, 54 in the Town and Village of Hammond, 17 in the Town of Depeyster. The squad also took calls in the Towns of Macomb, Russell, Hermon, Gouverneur, DeKalb, Madrid, Massena and Rossie.
In addition, the squad responded to the Village of Rensselaer Falls and were available to many other agencies for ALS intercepts. OVRS also aided in 70 transfers from hospital to hospital for critically ill patients, usually to Syracuse or Burlington, Vt.
The squad treated patients for the following complaints: abdominal pain – 100, allergic reactions – 11, altered mental status – 90, assaults – 32, back pain – 59, breathing problems – 209, burns – 1, cardiac arrests – 32, chest pains – 167, choking – 6, seizures – 89, diabetic problems – 47, falls – 250, hemorrhage/lacerations – 57, overdose – 42, pain – 103, traffic accidents – 125, traumatic injuries – 53, strobe/cva – 44, unconscious/fainting – 86 and many other miscellaneous calls for service. OVRS had an increase in assaults, altered mental status and traffic accidents.
