EMS Pandemic Protocols

A message from Bellmore-merrick’S emS chiefS

Since our founding in 1971, Bellmore-Merrick EMS has been focused on the health and safety of the people we serve as well as our workers on the front lines. Fast forward nearly 50 years, and these values still hold true, thanks to the help and generosity of the community.

Throughout the Covid-19 pandemic, BellmoreMerrick EMS has been available to provide the high level of service and patient care we have performed for decades. Since the beginning of this crisis, we have been in close contact with Nassau County officials, the Nassau County Police Department, the county Department of Health and all of our neighboring fire departments.

As an agency, we took additional precautions even before Covid-19 became the crisis we now face today. We instituted multiple advanced life support crews in house 24/7, allowing us to respond to emergency calls even faster than before. We also made changes to our current policies regarding member safety and the use of personal protective equipment.

While responding to calls in which any Covid-19 symptoms were present, our workers wore full PPE, including a mask, eye shield, gloves and gown not only to protect themselves but also the patient and loved ones at the scene. We also began conducting pre-contact screenings on emergency calls before contacting patients; this included briefly questioning the patient and any family members present to see if anyone was experiencing coronavirus symptoms.

We implemented daily wellness checks for personnel and installed additional hand sanitizer stations throughout our Bellmore headquarters. After each call, all non-disposable equipment and ambulances were cleaned and sanitized for the next patient. Additionally, once a month, we have an outside cleaning and sterilization service thoroughly sanitize our vehicles.

Everything we do as an agency is greatly impacted by the community we serve. Since we do not receive any funding from taxes and are separate from the local fire departments, we rely on your generosity to continue our service to you — our friends and neighbors. No one knows when an emergency will occur, but one thing you can be sure of is Bellmore-Merrick EMS will be there for you.

Sincerely,

Matthew Lubliner, Department Chief Scott Resnik, 2nd Assistant Chief