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0 of 3 Premium Clicks used this month SUBSCRIBE Print + Online Subscriber Activation | Register x Forgot Password | Need an Account? e-edition | subscribe | newsletter | deals Classifieds Jobs Autos Real Estate FEATURED » NEWS NOW Chinese site uses Medford domain name for car scam ... Medford teen sentenced for assaulting baby ... Mercy Flights debuts new helicopter ... Chinese site uses Medford domain name for car scam ... Medford teen sentenced for assaulting baby ... Mercy Flights debuts new helicopter ... JOSEPHINE COUNTY Mercy Flights competition creates confusion over dispatch protocols Comment By Jim Moore Grants Pass Daily Courier MailTribune.com By Jim Moore Grants Pass Daily Courier Posted Feb. 16, 2015 at 4:23 PM By Jim Moore Grants Pass Daily Courier Posted Feb. 16, 2015 at 4:23 PM » Social News Confusion over air ambulance service in Josephine County most likely will be settled today, when the local 911 Agency board of directors meets. The hubbub stems from confusion over how the 911 Agency operates and how that, in turn, relates to dispatching for air ambulance service in the region. Until Oregon Lifeguard began operating at the Grants Pass Airport late last year, the only air ambulance service that had been available locally was Mercy Flights, which is based in Medford. Mindful of the competition, last month the Josephine County Board of Commissioners recommended that 911 dispatchers should send whichever air ambulance service is based closer to the scene. The recommendation provoked backlash from Illinois Valley Fire Chief Dennis Hoke and shined a spotlight on the fact that the Board of Commissioners has no authority over the 911 Agency. County Commissioner Cherryl Walker said protocols such as the closest-proximity rule are designed to "prevent confusion. It's not up to the first responders." Her opinion on the subject is particularly weighty, as she was recently named to the normally obscure board that governs the 911 Agency and will attend her first meeting as a board member today. But several of her new colleagues on the 911 board contend it's up to the various fire departments and police agencies that use 911 to decide which air ambulance service will be called, not dispatchers. "It's not our job to make that determination," said Jim Polk, former city recorder of Cave Junction and member of the 911 board since 1992. Board member Jay Meredith, the finance director for the city of Grants Pass, agreed with Polk, saying whichever first responder is on the scene and makes the call for a helicopter should designate which air ambulance company to call. "The 911 Agency will respect the procedures and protocols set by each agency," Meredith added. The dispute began when Oregon Lifeguard set up shop at the Grants Pass Airport, competing with long-established Mercy Flights. Virtually every fire department in the region, as well as the Grants Pass Department of Public Safety's fire and police services, use the 911 dispatching service, as does American Medical Response ambulance and the Oregon Department of Forestry. The only two significant public safety agencies that don't use 911 dispatching services are the Josephine County Sheriff's Office and Oregon State Police. Emergency calls to 911 are instead transferred to separate dispatchers working for those agencies. Subsequently, Dr. Martin Hill, the county's medical supervisor of emergency medical services, issued a directive that the company with the quickest response will be used. The recommendation by the Board of Commissioners echoed Hill's directive. For the record, Hill is married to Commissioner Walker. Kristen Guenther, 911 dispatch supervisor, said rescue agencies were reluctant to work with Oregon Lifeguard at first because those agencies "had not been able to train with the new air ambulance company and mutual aid agreements for radio frequency use were not in place yet." In an email, Guenther added that it was decided that "the current practice of calling Mercy Flights first would remain in effect until the response agencies had a chance to train with the new company and to get the radio frequency agreements in place." It appears that at least some of that training has now been accomplished. Grants Pass Public Safety Director Bill Landis said that Oregon Lifeguard and the first responder agencies trained together at the Parkway Station in late January. "Everybody participated to see how they could work together," Landis said. Mike Shaw of Rural/Metro Fire said, "I know there's been training with them but some things still need to be worked out." That said, Rural/Metro, which rarely calls for air ambulance service, has no preference. "We're OK with calling the closest air ambulance as long as they are properly trained and provide quality patient care," Shaw said, adding, "Our stance is we're not taking a stance on it." Hoke, though, said the Illinois Valley Fire District will continue to request Mercy Flights first because that district's board of directors has designated Mercy Flights as the preferred first responder. Hoke previously told the Grants Pass Daily Courier that if Mercy Flights were not available he would "absolutely call Oregon Lifeguard," but that his advice to the 911 Agency board is to ignore the recommendation from the county Board of Commissioners. In addition to Walker, Polk and Meredith, the other 911 Agency board members are Ryan Nolan, the current city recorder of Cave Junction; Steve Scruggs of the Wolf Creek Fire Department; Delaine Sherman, a former administrative clerk and volunteer with the Illinois Fire District; and Shelly Hoffer of the Oregon Department of Forestry. The 911 board meeting is scheduled to begin at 3 p.m. in the Grants Pass City Manager's Conference Room, 101 N.W. A St. Reach reporter Jim Moore at 541-474-3721 or [email protected].   By Jim Moore Grants Pass Daily Courier MailTribune.com By Jim Moore Grants Pass Daily Courier Posted Feb. 16, 2015 at 4:23 PM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Southern Oregon Directory Featured Businesses Loading... 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