Forest Hills Area EMS

Part time, various shifts. Paramedics must be able to get command through UPMC.

COVID-19 vaccine update.

Joint training was held tonight with your ambulance service and South Fork and Summerhill Fire Departments.

Merry Christmas from everyone at FH EMS!

Many heartfelt thanks to several residents from Summerhill Borough, Adams Township and even anonymous areas, for the snacks, drinks and gift cards for food, for the employees of Forest Hills EMS, for their dedication and service to the people in our community and beyond. (Words from the donators) These thoughtful gestures go above and beyond, and most definitely will put a smile on our tired faces, during these most trying and difficult times! Thank You!

Beginning Friday December 18 and continuing through Tuesday December 22 there will be free COVID 19 testing at the Commerce Centre/Reliant Energy Building located at 1001 Broad Street in the City of Johnstown. This location will accept either drive up or walk up clients from 9:00am to 6:00pm each day or until 450 persons are tested per day. Registration on site will be required. Individuals will be asked for insurance information. Persons without health insurance will NOT be turned away. Test results will be made available within one (1) to three (3) days to those being tested either via email or telephone.

Your Ambulance service is honored to be the recipient of the Conemaugh Memorial Medical Center Emergency Medical Services Stroke Appreciation Award for the month of November. Our crews have been working safely and honorably throughout this pandemic to provide you with the best possible care.

We had a surprise planned for Doc at his retirement party, but as most things this year it was held up because of COVID. The plaque will be in the main lobby of your ambulance station. Once again words can’t express our gratitude.

Dear Forest Hills Family, after working with the Department of Health, effective immediately the school will be closed tomorrow Thursday, October 8, 2020 for all students and a staff The District will transition to remote learning. More information will be provided.

Congratulations Dr Karduck on 40 plus years of Medical Direction to your ambulance service. Doc has been a mentor, friend and director for hundreds of Emergency personnel in Cambria County and beyond. Last night Doc was honored by your ambulance service , Beaverdale QRS, Cambria County Commissioners and the Pennsylvania House of Representatives for his dedication. ... Thank you again Doc for everything, Forest Hills EMS would not be the service it is without you over the years.

We continue to raise awareness of the crisis in EMS through another press release. The following press release/Op Ed was sent to all media outlets this morning... and you can feel free to use this piece when talking with your local press. Continually Responding and Constantly Forgotten Hazard Pay Snub Aside, Funding Crisis in EMS Remains Imagine running a business where you are mandated by law to provide service to everyone who calls, whether you are paid for the service or not. Then consider that people who do pay, pay you a non-negotiable amount, determined by them, that is often well below what it costs you to provide the service. Lastly, any attempt to recoup a balance owed is government restricted. How does your business survive when the non-negotiated payment has only increased 20% in 18 years, but your costs have risen 67% or more in the same time period? This is the reality faced by the Commonwealth’s EMS agencies. A few weeks ago, EMS agencies and their providers Paramedics, EMTs, Prehospital RNs, EMRs - were snubbed by the Governor’s Hazard Pay Grant for frontline workers. For nearly a decade the EMS community has been overlooked by the Administration and the General Assembly despite being statutorily defined as an essential service. Numerous remedies have been presented none acted upon. The prevalent crisis facing EMS is FUNDING. Inadequate funding from government and commercial insurance reimbursement for life-saving services delivered; inadequate or non-existent funding for the costs of readiness from state, county or municipal entities whose constituents expect demand - EMS respond at a moment’s notice. Access to critical, life-saving treatment and transportation should be a guaranteed right for all. Yet for decades, EMS agencies barely tread water due to below cost reimbursement and a lack of state, county or municipal support, all while operational costs and regulatory mandates increased. Regrettably, the majority of proposals to correct reimbursement rates to allow for adequate compensation, to update archaic EMS payment policies and to increase Medical Assistance payments, have received little to no legislative or administrative action. The bloom that was the promise of the Senate Resolution 6 Commission Report recommendations is rapidly fading. EMS agencies in this Commonwealth were in dire financial straits prior to COVID-19 and since the pandemic, the meter is pegged toward total system failure. Response times are increasing and ambulances are failing to respond to the public’s 911 calls and to urgent requests to move critically ill patients from community hospitals to specialty care resource hospitals. As our hour glass drains, EMS agencies continue to respond with fewer ambulances and personnel. Until such time these issues are effectively addressed, EMS remains continually responding and constantly forgotten - those sands are rapidly draining. So may be the life of the next caller to 911. Dean A. Bollendorf, President Ambulance Association of Pennsylvania

Many Thanks to Dollar General in Sidman for the hand sanitizer....it’s greatly appreciated! We Thank You for being there as an essential worker in our time of need during COVID....

Our condolences go out to the members of East Hills EMS and Richland Twp. Fire Department on their loss.

So what does someone who is turning 11 today do when he finds out Chuckie Cheese is closed........ Yep come spend it with YOUR ambulance service. Adam is turning 11 today!! HAPPY BIRTHDAY Adam!. Thanks for the donuts.

As of today, the National Fallen Firefighter Foundation is reporting 76 firefighter and EMS COVID-related deaths. 39 firefighters and 36 EMS single role. Please keep them and their families in your prayers and let’s stay protected.

Your Ambulance service would like to congratulate Dr. Karduck on teaching Paramedic class for 43 years. Doc has been our Medical Director since the start of Forest Hills in 1976 and continues to educate and oversee our paramedics and EMTs today. Congratulations Doc !

Jakob , Kyle & Hunter Czapp for the donation of water and Gatorade. Thank you guys it is greatly appreciated !!!

Your Ambulance service is honored to be the recipient of the Conemaugh Memorial Medical Center Emergency Medical Services Stroke Appreciation Award for the month of June.