Joint Medical Emergency Notifications For NY Fire Department and Roosevelt Island Public Safety Department Requested By RI Elected Officials - No More 20 Minute Emergency Response Time

 Image Of FDNY Ambulance on Roosevelt Island

A Roosevelt Island resident reported on this incident in a post last January:

... A friend of mine, who lives at the Octagon, has a one year old daughter who had a seizure ... around midnight (she is ok now but she was blue, not breathing, unconscious).  It took an ambulance 20 minutes to get there. Before that the firemen came but I guess they are not sufficiently trained to deal with such things and were basically useless. It turns out the ambulance that eventually transported them to NY Presbyterian came all the way from Long Island (not Long Island City!) and it took the driver some time to figure out how to get to NY Presbyterian hospital...

The Roosevelt Island Public Safety Department was not notified of this emergency at the Octagon. In order to prevent a similar situation from occurring during a future Roosevelt island emergency, Assembly Member Micah Kellner together with other Roosevelt Island elected officials Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney, State Senator Jose Serrano, City Council Member Jessica Lappin and Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer sent the following letter to NY Fire Department Commissioner Salvatore Cassano the following letter:

We are writing to request that the Emergency Medical Service Division of New York City’s Fire Department establish a joint notification system with Roosevelt Island Operating Corporation’s Public Safety Department (Public Safety).

Roosevelt Island is a unique community located between Manhattan and Queens. The Roosevelt Island Operating Corporation (RIOC) was created in 1984 to manage infrastructure, services and development on the Island. Among its many functions, RIOC provides an on-site, neighborhood patrol force, known as Public Safety, which is responsible for the safety of Island residents. Public Safety is comprised of 38 officers, each of whom has been granted New York State Peace Officer Status, in accordance with Section 2 of New York State’s Criminal Procedure Law, as well as New York City Special Patrolman Status in accordance with Title 14 Chapter 1 Section 106 of the New York City Administrative Code. Each officer is certified in CPR, Automated External Deliberator (AED) use, and First Aid with the American Heart Association. Public Safety also has a single officer who is a certified Emergency Medical Technician.

Although Roosevelt Island is part of the Borough of Manhattan, its only ground access point is the Roosevelt Island Bridge that connects the Island with Astoria, Queens. This creates unique challenges, particularly with respect to Emergency Services. Response times to Roosevelt Island have been a persistent concern for Island residents.

Since Public Safety is located on the Island and is thoroughly familiar with each building and location, we believe it would be beneficial for them to be notified when there is a medical incident on the Island. Currently, when Public Safety is called directly about a medical emergency on the island they inform 911. However the reverse does not apply; Public Safety is not informed when there is a call to 911 for medical assistance. Notifying Public Safety would allow them to quickly respond to the scene, evaluate the situation, and possibly perform life saving CPR before an ambulance arrives on the scene. To this end, we propose that the FDNY evaluate the following options:

1. Public Safety could be included in the Mutual Aid Response System (MARS).
2. All addresses on Roosevelt Island could be given Premise History Indicators that include a note about the availability of Public Safety for assistance
3. The dispatch system could be programmed in order to prompt communication specialists to notify Public Safety directly.

We believe whatever system the FDNY chooses to implement to notify Public Safety of emergency medical calls will ultimately better serve the residents of Roosevelt Island. Public Safety is ready and willing to help, and we hope that the FDNY will take advantage of their resources and expertise....

Below is the full text of the letter.
RI Ambluances Dual Response Letter