In Roanoke, Va. Overdoses Cause Longer Response Time, More Strain on EMS

  ROANOKE, Va. (WSLS) - The opioid epidemic is hitting home at Roanoke Fire-EMS. The city's first responders are seeing more opioid-related overdoses than in years past. "That is causing a stress on our system. You're seeing our performance indicators slightly dip. We're not able to get there as quick because our units our busier, they're tied up," said David Hoback, chief of Roanoke Fire-EMS. In 2017, Roanoke Fire-EMS responded to more than 23,000 EMS calls -- that's a 5 percent increase in the demand for EMS services compared to 2016. Chief Hoback says some of that is due to an aging population, but a lot of it is rooted in the deep drug epidemic across the country.  "It's sad. It really is because the opioid epidemic is destroying families and it is destroying people," said Hoback. Read more...
Source: JEMS Operations - Category: Emergency Medicine Authors: Tags: News Videos Operations Source Type: news