# New FDNY Ambulance



## CAR1 (Aug 20, 2012)

http://www.google.com/imgres?num=10...w=207&start=0&ndsp=15&ved=1t:429,r:7,s:0,i:95
What's the point of having a 4 door cab? or second bench? I'm sure these buses

cost more, get the 2 door cab and give a raise.


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## med51fl (Aug 21, 2012)

Check out this beast of an ambulance.  It has 4 doors on the cab and is the size of a fire truck.


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## MexDefender (Aug 21, 2012)

Future RPA said:


> What's the point of having a 4 door cab? or second bench? I'm sure these buses
> 
> cost more, get the 2 door cab and give a raise.



I've seen this model before but it was only used for marketing. A salesman comes by every couple weeks with that model in the hopes of trying to sale an ambulance to a rural agency. In the back its just full of catalogs and other equipment, the salesman isn't a first responder so I found it odd he uses it.


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## lawndartcatcher (Aug 21, 2012)

Ha! I actually know the answer to this one.

I've seen a couple of local NICU / PICU units that use these. The crew essentially becomes taxi drivers - they show up, pick up the 5-person NICU team from the local children's hospital and all of their gear (built into a modified Stryker stretcher), drive them to the remote hospital, put junior into the incubator, put mom and / or dad in the front, and both EMTs / medics drive everyone back to the children's hospital. 

If there's a really sick kid it means that both mom and dad can go to and from the hospital together while the kid gets CC transport both ways (think high-tech kids going from home to a doctor's appointment and back home).


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## CAR1 (Aug 21, 2012)

Nope. These are in use in NYC as regular response units.


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## Veneficus (Aug 21, 2012)

Future RPA said:


> http://www.google.com/imgres?num=10...w=207&start=0&ndsp=15&ved=1t:429,r:7,s:0,i:95
> 
> 
> What's the point of having a 4 door cab? or second bench?



You ever work in the hood and have to transport a whole clan because the single mom couldn't leave her 7 kids at home when she is having her next crack baby?

Edit: an extra bench is also useful when you stage on street corners instead of a station, sleeping on the ferno or stryker stretchers for an hour or two is hard on the back.


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## citizensoldierny (Aug 21, 2012)

Maimonides is Brooklyn has a beast or two also, hella nice to look at and work in , I just wouldn't want to be the one to park and drive it in a tight urban evironment. At least you have enough room to get comfortable in it though.


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## CAR1 (Aug 21, 2012)

Veneficus said:


> You ever work in the hood and have to transport a whole clan because the single mom couldn't leave her 7 kids at home when she is having her next crack baby?



I know that this happens, however I don't think the cost/benefit is worth it.


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## CAR1 (Aug 21, 2012)

citizensoldierny said:


> Maimonides is Brooklyn has a beast or two also, hella nice to look at and work in , I just wouldn't want to be the one to park and drive it in a tight urban evironment. At least you have enough room to get comfortable in it though.


Maimo's buses are awesome. I did hear though that even those big 4 wheel drive 

ones which they have got stock in the big storm last winter.

Maimo is a private entity, as apposed to FDNY which is taxpayer money.


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## Veneficus (Aug 21, 2012)

Future RPA said:


> I know that this happens, however I don't think the cost/benefit is worth it.



I really like the mercedes sprinters.

I think smaller is the better way to go in ambulances.

Easier to fit places, easy to maneuver, fuel efficent, and safer.

I have also discovered when you sit right next to a patient on a raised platform like many here in Europe, there is no need to stand and provide care, which is safer. 

I have noticed a trend over the years that fire and EMS vehicles seem to get bigger and bigger as the years go by. 

I disagree with this trend.


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## shfd739 (Aug 21, 2012)

Veneficus said:


> I really like the mercedes sprinters.
> 
> I think smaller is the better way to go in ambulances.
> 
> ...



This^^^

Sprinters rock.


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## Tigger (Aug 21, 2012)

Future RPA said:


> I know that this happens, however I don't think the cost/benefit is worth it.



I would imagine FDNY disagrees with you. Rationale I heard behind them was that EMS members are required to have a set of turnout gear (or something like it) and possibly some sort of hazmat gear as well. There was not room for this gear in the box compartments. Solution, place duffel bags in extended cab, also have the option of transporting family members more easily or a medic student. Also has the nice benefit of reclining the seats to a comfortable degree.

What's with all questioning other agency's use or design of equipment as of late?


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## DPM (Aug 21, 2012)

Tigger said:


> I would imagine FDNY disagrees with you. Rationale I heard behind them was that EMS members are required to have a set of turnout gear (or something like it) and possibly some sort of hazmat gear as well. There was not room for this gear in the box compartments. Solution, place duffel bags in extended cab, also have the option of transporting family members more easily or a medic student. Also has the nice benefit of reclining the seats to a comfortable degree.
> 
> What's with all questioning other agency's use or design of equipment as of late?



Because they don't like what they've got, so they want everyone else to have sh1tty kit too 

London Ambulance Service uses Sprinters (and something else...) Those that are interested should take a look. It's the closest thing to a Type III you'll get while still being a 'vanbulance'. They seem to be working well.


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## traumaluv2011 (Aug 21, 2012)

Tigger said:


> Rationale I heard behind them was that EMS members are required to have a set of turnout gear (or something like it) and possibly some sort of hazmat gear as well. There was not room for this gear in the box compartments. Solution, place duffel bags in extended cab, also have the option of transporting family members more easily or a medic student. Also has the nice benefit of reclining the seats to a comfortable degree.



I could see that as a reasonable need for that. There are ambulances made with a lot of different features. It just depends on what you need.


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## CAR1 (Aug 21, 2012)

Tigger said:


> I would imagine FDNY disagrees with you. Rationale I heard behind them was that EMS members are required to have a set of turnout gear (or something like it) and possibly some sort of hazmat gear as well. There was not room for this gear in the box compartments. Solution, place duffel bags in extended cab, also have the option of transporting family members more easily or a medic student. Also has the nice benefit of reclining the seats to a comfortable degree.
> 
> What's with all questioning other agency's use or design of equipment as of late?



They were required to have turn out gear way before they got these buses. I 

would think that some of the FDNY guys wouldn't be happy with these buses, 

but would much rather a raise.


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## NJEMT95 (Aug 21, 2012)

Another ambulance purchasing choice I cannot understand is that of a local volley squad near where I live. They have a call volume of about 1200/year in a wealthy township with 10-15 minute transport times to 2 major hospitals and 15-20 to the regional trauma center and slightly longer to the level 1.
They have 3 Horton rigs that have 2 stretchers each. This of course, can be useful in MCI situations, but for day-to-day BLS emergencies, seems excessive. At least these can accomodate their crews of 5 (whackers) EMTs.....


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## Tigger (Aug 21, 2012)

Future RPA said:


> They were required to have turn out gear way before they got these buses. I
> 
> would think that some of the FDNY guys wouldn't be happy with these buses,
> 
> but would much rather a raise.



Being required to carry something and having appropriate space for something are two entirely separate things. It is also only an extra 5 grand for the crew cab or so says the Chrysler commercial vehicle website. Nonetheless I'd let the FDNY crews speak for themselves on the matter.


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## Veneficus (Aug 21, 2012)

Future RPA said:


> They were required to have turn out gear way before they got these buses. I
> 
> would think that some of the FDNY guys wouldn't be happy with these buses,
> 
> but would much rather a raise.



The cost of a raise is considerably more than the cost ofextending a few cabs.

A single person working 40 hours a week for 50 weeks would get $2k extra a year in gross pay with a $1 an hour raise. 

If you take out taxes and add in the cost of an agency funding retirement at a % of an individuals highest pay, plus the amount of employees in FDNY, you are talking about $100s of thousands if not $millions a year.

Increase that raise to 3% of salary, and it is easily millions of dollars a year.

sometimes adding a little luxury to working conditions is the best you can do for your people within your budget.


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## Handsome Robb (Aug 21, 2012)

I know we toyed with the idea of Ford extended or crew cabs since we are replacing our entire fleet but we ended up deciding on Chevy/GMC van chassis instead.

The thought for us was the ability to have our personal gear in the cab with us as well as be able to have third riders, specifically medic interns have a forward facing seat and not be stuk in the box. 

As much as I want to say, "I rode in the box they should too", it'd definitely be safer to have them up front in a crew cab with us.


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## traumaluv2011 (Aug 22, 2012)

NVRob said:


> As much as I want to say, "I rode in the box they should too", it'd definitely be safer to have them up front in a crew cab with us.


They definitely don't make the box for safety. It's meant to be practical for providing care for a patient. Yes there are seat belts on the seats, but those are just lap belts. They won't help you in an accident as much as the shoulder strap with the lap belt would. There are also no air bags to keep you from causing yourself too much damage. I'm guessing the two back seats would have side airbags maybe?


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## BoogieDownMedic (Aug 24, 2012)

Tigger said:


> I would imagine FDNY disagrees with you. Rationale I heard behind them was that EMS members are required to have a set of turnout gear (or something like it) and possibly some sort of hazmat gear as well. There was not room for this gear in the box compartments. Solution, place duffel bags in extended cab, also have the option of transporting family members more easily or a medic student.



This...

BITS is not a big fan of unsecured gear in the back of the ambulance. The crew cabs give FDNY EMTs/Medics more room to carry their turnout gear and other personal gear. The buses themselves are not that much bigger than the old buses, just a little bit longer.


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## DPM (Aug 24, 2012)

Forward of the side door on the right hand side there is an externally accessible compartment, I thought turnouts etc were in there...


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## VFlutter (Aug 24, 2012)

lawndartcatcher said:


> Ha! I actually know the answer to this one.
> 
> I've seen a couple of local NICU / PICU units that use these. The crew essentially becomes taxi drivers - they show up, pick up the 5-person NICU team from the local children's hospital and all of their gear (built into a modified Stryker stretcher), drive them to the remote hospital, put junior into the incubator, put mom and / or dad in the front, and both EMTs / medics drive everyone back to the children's hospital.
> 
> If there's a really sick kid it means that both mom and dad can go to and from the hospital together while the kid gets CC transport both ways (think high-tech kids going from home to a doctor's appointment and back home).



That is how they do it at our hospital, really cool setup.


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