Newly released data found that Durham County EMS is having a hard time keeping up with the number of 911 calls they receive.
The County Office of Emergency Services presented those numbers at a Board of County Commissioners work session on Monday. Their data showed the number of calls coming in exceeded the number of emergency crews able to respond for 16 hours every day.
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That means lower-priority calls are being put on hold more frequently and for longer periods.
WRAL Investigates previously reported on the toll staffing shortages are taking on paramedics.
Chief Paramedic Seth Komansky said this was the first time since 2018 that any new full-time EMTs have been added, and it is also the first time in 10 years they've gotten a new ambulance.
“We identified that the deployment model for EMS is about ten years old in terms of units on the streets versus the call volume,” Komansky said.
He says compensation is also a challenge compared to neighboring agencies, and this system is not sustainable, in part because it's burning out their staff.
Komansky says they are working to address the problem.
One option they are exploring is to add non-paramedics to their crews while continuing to interview potential new recruits.
