In 1972,
the need was recognized for a dedicated ambulance service for the
Town of Union.
The Town of Union purchased the first ambulance in 1973. Quarters
were established in the basement of the Hooper Road School on Main
Street in Endwell. The Squad responded to their first emergency
call on June 1, 1973.
In succeeding years, more advanced training was begun and UVES became
a training center for persons representing many other squads in
the area. Many of these people gravitated to UVES to become certified
as Emergency Medical Technicians. Others joined the Squad through
its CPR classes and by witnessing UVES in action.
UVES assisted in the establishment of squads in Vestal, Broome
and Chenango. Through CPR and EMT classes, UVES helped to inspire
people to become leaders of agencies in their own locale.
In June of 1975, the West Endicott Fire Department relinquished
its ambulance service in their district and became part of UVES.
In June of 1976, Johnson City had organized a squad and was ready
to respond. UVES, through a federal grant, bought an ambulance for
the Johnson City squad and facilities were located in the old Municipal
Building basement.
Advanced Life Support was begun in June of 1975 via the acquisition
of a heart monitor donated by United Health Services. Cardiac Technicians
received their training and certification, and UVES was designated
a Heart Mobile soon after.
The Town of Union procured UVES' first full-size modular ambulance
in 1977. With that purchase, the modular soon became the vehicle
of choice, not only with UVES, but also with most squads in the
surrounding area.
Housing for the Central Squad remained in the Hooper School until
a new Central Station and headquarters was built and dedicated in
1983.
Facilities for the West Endicott squad were in the West Endicott
Fire Station until 1986 when the use of the facility was no longer
available. A new station was built by the Town of Union on a site
already owned by UVES, at 323 Maple Street in Endicott in 1987.
Johnson City had several sites to operate from: The old Municipal
Building, Theodore Roosevelt School, Endicott-Johnson Security and
Engineering Building, the North Side Fire Station on Harry L. Drive,
and finally the facility on North Riverside Drive. In September
of 2000, this facility was consecrated by our Chaplain, Father Dennis
Ruda, and reamed the Nicholas Panko Station, in honor of Mr. Panko's
consistent efforts with UVES.
Initially, there were three components of UVES by June 1976: Endwell,
West Endicott and Johnson City. Staffing around the clock has been
a common practice since 1976. Call volumes escalated and soon UVES
was responding to and average of 3000 calls per year.
Staffing these three units soon began to be a major concern. The
critical hours that remained unfilled were when people worked or
slept. A major change in the Squad's organization occurred in 1983,
when the three separate units were consolidated into a single entity.
The greatest impact on UVES has been the establishment of third
party billing, which started in January 1993. Prior to that, financial
support was received from fund drives, gifts, bequests, etc. The
Town of Union provided all support with vehicles, buildings, fuel,
maintenance and replacement of UVES needs.
In 1992 UVES recruited and hired a Director of Operations, whose
first task was to establish third-party billing. With the establishment
of third-party billing, funds soon became available to supplement
the Volunteer Membership, and in June of 1993, the first four paid
staff were added. Soon after, additional paid staff was added to
provide coverage with at least one Advanced Life Support (ALS) ambulance
on duty at all times.
In the fall of 2002, the Town of Union adopted and passed legislation
establishing an ambulance improvement tax district for the entire
township. Before this legislation, the Village of Johnson City and
Endicott (both within the town) had previously adopted similar legislation
supporting the town-wide district. This was formally adopted on
November 20, 2002, unanimously.
Until January 1, 2003, UVES used no direct tax support, and
was self-sustaining. UVES' three facilities are owned by the
Town of Union, but their maintenance, upkeep, and utilities were
paid by UVES. The Squad owns our fleet of vehicles, and pays for
all parts, maintenance and insurance.
For the first time, tax revenue will be used to augment the income
of UVES, to assure EMS requirements will be met, now and in the
future.
UVES continues to grow and change as the healthcare industry implements
changes. In August of 2003, UVES launched a new transport venture.
With additional staff and vehicles, UVES began serving health care
institutions with stat and scheduled ambulance transport on a local
or long distance basis.
In January of 2004, UVES established a sophisticated billing division
to process it's billing internally. Through the formation of a DBA,
UVES successfully created PreHospital Billing Solutions (PHBS) to
meet both the internal and external demands for quality EMS billing.
A dedicated Board of Directors, Volunteers and Staff from the Community
serve to provide the best pre-hospital care available! |
