# Compton fire, ambulance company



## Asclepius911 (Oct 6, 2013)

Today as I was passively playing street fighter on my phone, I noticed Liberty ambulance going code 3, another day when I was at PIH in Whittier I noticed another liberty ambulance coming in hot with fire , does anyone know if they have fire contracts like care/Mccormick ?


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## Jim37F (Oct 6, 2013)

Asclepius911 said:


> Today as I was passively playing street fighter on my phone, I noticed Liberty ambulance going code 3, another day when I was at PIH in Whittier I noticed another liberty ambulance coming in hot with fire , does anyone know if they have fire contracts like care/Mccormick ?



Only companies with primary 911 response contracts in LA Co are Schaefer, AMR, Care, McCormick, Gerber, and AmeriCare. 

I know Bowers has occasional backup response for City of Vernon Fire Dept.  Beyond that I couldn't tell you who runs backup to local FDs.


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## LACoGurneyjockey (Oct 6, 2013)

Other than the ones listed, companies with back up contracts in LA County that I know of include MedCoast, Ambuserve, Explorer-1, Shoreline (primary in Westminster I think), but I've heard nothing about Liberty, though your experience seems to indicate they do.


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## Jim37F (Oct 6, 2013)

LACoGurneyjockey said:


> Other than the ones listed, companies with back up contracts in LA County that I know of include MedCoast, Ambuserve, Explorer-1, Shoreline (primary in Westminster I think), but I've heard nothing about Liberty, though your experience seems to indicate they do.



For my own curiosity do you know where/what agencies those companies back up?

When I was at PRN, management said they backed up McCormick though it had been so long since they had a Call for that guys were wondering whether or not they still had that lol


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## Amberlamps916 (Oct 6, 2013)

I know for sure that Liberty backs up Downey.


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## Asclepius911 (Oct 6, 2013)

I was speaking to one of the emts at Harbor general, I'm not sure how if it's true or not, but he said they back up Compton, and Downey fire.


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## LACoGurneyjockey (Oct 7, 2013)

Funny, I spoke to an emt at medcoast and he said they back up Compton and Downey, americare backs up McCormick and care in south bay, and ambuserve backs up Gerber in Torrance and McCormick in the southern areas of their zones, more specifically I don't know.


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## Amberlamps916 (Oct 7, 2013)

LACoGurneyjockey said:


> Funny, I spoke to an emt at medcoast and he said they back up Compton and Downey, americare backs up McCormick and care in south bay, and ambuserve backs up Gerber in Torrance and McCormick in the southern areas of their zones, more specifically I don't know.



Multiple companies provide backup services for certain cities.


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## Asclepius911 (Oct 7, 2013)

Well I know ambuserve and mccormick are owned by westmed, and they back each other up, and mccormick steps into Gerber's turf in torrance as back up, PRN for sure 100% that they don't run fire calls (for profit only), and they don't even have jump bags, and I've seen Americare go code in the lakewood area so I figure they are back up for some cities  near there (Compton, Downey, bellflower). Probably All those cities use all companies based near there.


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## Amberlamps916 (Oct 7, 2013)

Asclepius911 said:


> Well I know ambuserve and mccormick are owned by westmed, and they back each other up, and mccormick steps into Gerber's turf in torrance as back up, PRN for sure 100% that they don't run fire calls (for profit only), and they don't even have jump bags, and I've seen Americare go code in the lakewood area so I figure they are back up for some cities  near there (Compton, Downey, bellflower). Probably All those cities use all companies based near there.



I'm not sure where you got your info. Ambuserve is not owned my Westmed. Also, you're implying that the other private ambulance companies you mentioned aren't operating for profit?


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## Asclepius911 (Oct 7, 2013)

Well there is always company that only operate exclusively for profit and profit only, any other call they would drop, I know dispatchers from PRN that would drop fire calls because they "aren't suppose to take them", and of course all these companies are Trying to make money it's a business. But there are some companies that are willing borrow their resources regardless if there is no profit to be made such as those uninsured patients that live under a bridge that don't even have a name or ID, my sources are from networking you know , talking to people of other ambos companies, and co workers that move on to other jobs.


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## onrope (Oct 9, 2013)

Asclepius911 said:


> Today as I was passively playing street fighter on my phone, I noticed Liberty ambulance going code 3, another day when I was at PIH in Whittier I noticed another liberty ambulance coming in hot with fire , does anyone know if they have fire contracts like care/Mccormick ?



This happens when a bls crew gets to a snf and then upgrades, usually with the pt already in the back loaded. Happened a few times when I worked Care, it was easier for the squad to jump in and go then to take the pt out and transfer onto another gurney. Legal per the contract? I have no idea but when you run 60,000 calls a year in LA county a few transports lost here or there is not going to break any emt's heart. As to the quality of emt skills and driving of the random ift companies that left some to be desired according to the squadies I ran with. Not a common sight but it does happen, usually with the squad leading because the ambulance has no idea where they are going. 

On a side note I know that Care now runs Vernon's bls calls. The Care machine continues to grow


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## ITBITB13 (Oct 9, 2013)

onrope said:


> This happens when a bls crew gets to a snf and then upgrades, usually with the pt already in the back loaded. Happened a few times when I worked Care, it was easier for the squad to jump in and go then to take the pt out and transfer onto another gurney. Legal per the contract? I have no idea but when you run 60,000 calls a year in LA county a few transports lost here or there is not going to break any emt's heart. As to the quality of emt skills and driving of the random ift companies that left some to be desired according to the squadies I ran with. Not a common sight but it does happen, usually with the squad leading because the ambulance has no idea where they are going.
> 
> On a side note I know that Care now runs Vernon's bls calls. The Care machine continues to grow



I was dropping off at St Francis, when an Explorer-1 rig rolled in hot with Compton fire. I, along with a few other crews there, were pretty surprised. The crew seemed crazy with excitement. And I'll leave it that. 

It was kinda cute.^_^


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## onrope (Oct 9, 2013)

Ivan_13 said:


> I was dropping off at St Francis, when an Explorer-1 rig rolled in hot with Compton fire. I, along with a few other crews there, were pretty surprised. The crew seemed crazy with excitement. And I'll leave it that.
> 
> It was kinda cute.^_^



It is amusing. It doesn't take long for the glitz and glamour of 911 to wear off. Glorified ifts, especially when you have those days where 13/14 transports are bls and your two MARs are francis or white.


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## Asclepius911 (Oct 11, 2013)

I think that's the way it should be for most company, give emts the opportunity to experience ems , code 3, meeting with a fire engine or squad, spiking a bag, it keeps ems interesting. As oppose to running dialysis, wound care, or taking dear grandma to a doctor appointment, or helping move a 500 pounder wildebeest to go see her dietitian all day, any place, any where.


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## SurfEMT (Oct 11, 2013)

Check their websites. Several companies say they back up Compton and Downey. Liberty, Americare, and Mercy (just Downey) are just a few who I know say they provide back up.


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## dumluk (Oct 26, 2013)

Liberty is now the primary back-up for Downey. They also back up Compton, Vernon, and other surrounding towns.


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## Blueprint1970 (Nov 9, 2013)

LACoGurneyjockey said:


> Funny, I spoke to an emt at medcoast and he said they back up Compton and Downey, americare backs up McCormick and care in south bay, and ambuserve backs up Gerber in Torrance and McCormick in the southern areas of their zones, more specifically I don't know.



McCormick does not back up Torrance.


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## LACoGurneyjockey (Nov 14, 2013)

Blueprint1970 said:


> McCormick does not back up Torrance.



but what i said was...


			
				LACoGurneyJockey said:
			
		

> and ambuserve backs up Gerber in Torrance



and you sir must read more carefully


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## cspinebrah (Nov 22, 2013)

onrope said:


> This happens when a bls crew gets to a snf and then upgrades, usually with the pt already in the back loaded. Happened a few times when I worked Care, it was easier for the squad to jump in and go then to take the pt out and transfer onto another gurney. Legal per the contract? I have no idea but when you run 60,000 calls a year in LA county a few transports lost here or there is not going to break any emt's heart. As to the quality of emt skills and driving of the random ift companies that left some to be desired according to the squadies I ran with. Not a common sight but it does happen, usually with the squad leading because the ambulance has no idea where they are going.
> 
> On a side note I know that Care now runs Vernon's bls calls. The Care machine continues to grow



On point, i used to work for a small IFT companies and many times these SNFs will call us to transport pt to an ER and when we get load them up their condition goes to sh*t and we are forced to call fire due to our protocol and fire just hopes on board with us or en route we up grade to code three. Happened to be a couple times. I see a lot of ambulance companies doing it. I know "LifeLine" goes code 3 at times during CCT transports for reason I DONT UNDERSTAND/KNOW. 

and i know for the eastside of LA county AMR and Cole-Schafer have a mutual aid system and CS calls AMR a lot to pick up some calls for recourses during MCI's. Such as the bus that flipped on the freeway like 2 months ago. CS called AMR and McCormick.  BOOHOO CAREBEARS! :rofl:


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## Jim37F (Nov 22, 2013)

cspinebrah said:


> On point, i used to work for a small IFT companies and many times these SNFs will call us to transport pt to an ER and when we get load them up their condition goes to sh*t and we are forced to call fire due to our protocol and fire just hopes on board with us or en route we up grade to code three. Happened to be a couple times. I see a lot of ambulance companies doing it. I know "LifeLine" goes code 3 at times during CCT transports for reason I DONT UNDERSTAND/KNOW.
> 
> and i know for the eastside of LA county AMR and Cole-Schafer have a mutual aid system and CS calls AMR a lot to pick up some calls for recourses during MCI's. Such as the bus that flipped on the freeway like 2 months ago. CS called AMR and McCormick.  BOOHOO CAREBEARS! :rofl:



Wow, I live in the SGV and I can't remember the last time I've seen a McCormick unit around here, that must've been some ungodly response time for them since their nearest station is probably a good 30 min away without traffic.

Just the other day I saw an LACoFD squad leading McCormick into the hospital. Me and my partner theorized that it was simply a new driver who didn't quite know where Torrance Memorial was.

When I was doing CCT with PRN the one and only time I did lights and sirens was when our patient decided to have her STEMI in a hospital without a cath lab (so instead of the paramedics 12 leading her and going straight to the cath lab she was code blue'd to the ER who then realized what they had)


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## bobsicle (Nov 24, 2013)

AmeriCare use to back up Compton and Downey when there front line rigs were busy, or if the patient wanted to go to county or something. AmeriCare would recieve maybe 20 calls from Downey and 10 from Compton a week, and give 5-10 minute ETA, but would arrive in 30 minutes. CFD and DFD got tired of this and now call Liberty first.


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## NPO (Dec 6, 2013)

We get quite a lot of code 3 transports for an IFT company.  I generally hear one or two code 3 calls per day. When I was on a medic unit we usually got an emergency transfer at least once per week, if not more. We do Kaisers Code 3 and Keck's Code 3 transports. I've also picked up from some clinics and had to upgrade due to various reasons. But we downgraded our only 911 contract because it was becoming a nuisance for us and the city since we didnt have any dedicated rigs. But I know we are looking into new 911 contracts.

I had a PRN guy come up to me and say he wanted to come to us since we do so much more code 3 than them... I guess if thats your thing, cool. I know PRN doesnt get as many kaiser code 3s as we do. Dunno if thats by design or chance though. The way I understand it, the contract is split 50/50.

Has anyone else noticed these smaller start ups running code with non-functioning light bars? Ive seen a few liberty rigs run code and the light bar doesnt even turn on. Just the 3 big red squares on the front, which technically, is still legal, but shady non-the-less. I saw a MedReach rig going code, same thing, no functioning light bar. I wouldn't like that if it was me driving.

I like our emergency transfers. They are usually pretty interesting, and allow you to actually exercise your EMT brain and assist the medic or nurse.


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## Woodtownemt (Dec 6, 2013)

As far as running code 3 with working light bar depends on the rig. If you worked on enough of them you'll notice that configuration might change a bit. Example being that some rigs have a dedicated switch for the light bar. It can be easily over looked if the driver is not familiar with rig or is just plain excited about running a call on a "1" (aka code 3).


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## NPO (Dec 6, 2013)

That happenedto me. Or my medic rather, he was driving. He overlooked the master switch but the siren was on. 

Its important to be familiar with your equuptment. When I get a trainee I take them to all of the configurations and show them.

I can think of any of our units with a seperate light bar switch though. All of ours say primary/secondary.


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## hoeyxd (Dec 13, 2013)

Addrobo said:


> I'm not sure where you got your info. Ambuserve is not owned my Westmed. Also, you're implying that the other private ambulance companies you mentioned aren't operating for profit?



The CEO of ambuserve supposedly is the son of mccormicks CEO


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## hoeyxd (Dec 13, 2013)

SurfEMT said:


> Check their websites. Several companies say they back up Compton and Downey. Liberty, Americare, and Mercy (just Downey) are just a few who I know say they provide back up.



Mccormick also backs up Compton, haha. I think the captain has a bunch of ambulance companies in a hat and whichever one he choses he calls


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## ITBITB13 (Dec 15, 2013)

hoeyxd said:


> The CEO of ambuserve supposedly is the son of mccormicks CEO



Something like that..


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## cspinebrah (Dec 16, 2013)

California law states that you need a single steady burning red light on the from of your rig to drive code 3, but i do see some 911 companies that don't even have that but I wont get into that. 
And as far as Compton Fire I think they are going to be switching to a squad and private ambu company. Another thing i've been hearing about that is AMR will be inhouse with them by mid next year, but time will tell!


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## Cuf (Sep 5, 2014)

hoeyxd said:


> The CEO of ambuserve supposedly is the son of mccormicks CEO


Negative. The CEO of Ambuserve is Melissa Harris. No relation to the Chidleys


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## Jim37F (Sep 5, 2014)

Compton uses their own in house Ambulance Operators (similar to Glendale, Downey, Hermosa Beach and a couple other area departments. Rather than contract with a private company for BLS ambulance response, they hire single role EMTs who are Fire Dept employees operating Fire Dept ambulances. 


> Today the Fire Department has 84 sworn employees and five civilian employees. Its resources include four fire stations and nine front-line emergency vehicles comprised of four fire engines, one truck, two paramedic squads, and *two basic life support transport ambulances.*


http://www.comptoncity.org/index.php/fire-department/fire-department-overview.htm

http://www.comptoncity.org/index.php/Job-Specs.htm



> If an incident exceeds the scope of City resources, the department has access to resources of nearby fire departments in Vernon, Downey, Santa Fe Springs and Montebello.


So sounds like if they have 3 or more calls at once and need a back up response they'll call on of those departments which will more than likely dispatch an RA or other paramedic resource and transport (for example if Compton called Montebello,  Montebello would send a Paramedic Engine company and Care Ambulance,  their normal BLS provider)


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## drl (Sep 5, 2014)

Yep, Compton Fire has its own ambulances. Last I heard, McCormick and Care provide backup as needed.


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## Jn1232th (May 29, 2015)

NPO said:


> We get quite a lot of code 3 transports for an IFT company.  I generally hear one or two code 3 calls per day. When I was on a medic unit we usually got an emergency transfer at least once per week, if not more. We do Kaisers Code 3 and Keck's Code 3 transports. I've also picked up from some clinics and had to upgrade due to various reasons. But we downgraded our only 911 contract because it was becoming a nuisance for us and the city since we didnt have any dedicated rigs. But I know we are looking into new 911 contracts.
> 
> I had a PRN guy come up to me and say he wanted to come to us since we do so much more code 3 than them... I guess if thats your thing, cool. I know PRN doesnt get as many kaiser code 3s as we do. Dunno if thats by design or chance though. The way I understand it, the contract is split 50/50.
> 
> ...


If you don't mind me asking, where do you work?


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## NPO (May 29, 2015)

justin1232 said:


> If you don't mind me asking, where do you work?



At the time of the post, I worked for Bowers.


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## RocketMedic (Jun 3, 2015)

Lol I never actually ran a dialysis transfer until Acadian.


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## ImVenom (Aug 23, 2016)

*HEARD THIS OWNER BEATS UP HIS EMPLOYEES AND DOESNT PAY THEM ON TIME? IS THIS TRUE? EXPLORER-1 AMBULANCE IN CAMPTON.*


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