Lake City is still seeing a shortage in Emergency Management Service (EMS) workers in Calhoun County for over a year now. The shortage began when Stewart Memorial Community Hospital (SMCH) started renovations causing the EMS crew in Lake City to go back to Rockwell City. City Administrator, Eric Wood, says it has been him in town during the day and at night with a couple partners.
City officials have been working to address the problem for months now. Wood says there is a two-fold problem with this situation.
Talks are ongoing, the city is gathering with SMCH next week and then that night they have a county wide EMS meeting. Wood says he would like to eventually make EMS a necessity in Calhoun County.
Having a full time EMS staff would help the county out tremendously. About 10 to 15 times a month SMCH needs to transfer patients, and as of right now they need an outside party to do that. With a local EMS in the county, it would be more cost efficient to transfer patients.
