Delaware County’s Emergency Medical Services Department has been named the 2020 EMS Agency of the Year for Ohio. DCEMS’s medical director Dr. Ashish Panchal also has been named as the recipient of this year’s Frank Giampetro Distinguished EMS Educator of the Year award.
“These awards are a testament to the work our people have done to collectively steer the ship down a forward and positive path,” said DCEMS Director Jeff Fishel. “They are recognition of positive change, continued improvement and teamwork.”
The EMS Star of Life Awards program is administered by the Ohio Department of Public Safety, Division of Emergency Medical Services. This marks the 20th year for the awards, which will be presented May 20 at the Ohio Department of Transportation’s auditorium in Columbus. There are approximately 1,225 emergency medical service agencies in Ohio.
DCEMS annually responds to more than 6,000 calls in a 459-square-mile service area. The department employs 120 full-time employees and approximately 10 part-time staff members. It operates 10 medic stations throughout Delaware County and works cooperatively with other EMS providers in the county.
“We have seen our EMS team make some really substantive changes in the last year,” said Delaware County Administrator Mike Frommer. “We implemented a Continuous Quality Improvement program, which also lead to our regaining national accreditation. Out of about 12,000 EMS agencies in the U.S., Delaware County EMS is one of less than 250 to be nationally accredited and one of only six in Ohio.”
For more information about Delaware County EMS, please go to https://ems.co.delaware.oh.us/.