Equipment, training upgrades aid in prompt patient removal

Imagine traveling in a vehicle and are suddenly involved in a head-on collision. One is disoriented and scared, and are trapped in the vehicle.

On Nov. 8 this scary scenario did occur on Route 17 in Hope. Emergency units were dispatched to the scene. One of the responding agencies was the Camden First Aid Association Access Team.

The CFAA Access Team is a group of volunteers whose mission at the scene is to “open up” a vehicle, or vehicles, providing EMS personnel space to work and remove injured persons. They use hydraulic tools (Jaws of Life), electric tools, hand tools, and air bags to perform this task.

A recent upgrade to the Jaws tools, as well as members commitment to training and education, permitted a quick patient removal from one of the vehicles at the Route 17 accident.

The equipment upgrade included: mounting a hydraulic pump in a cabinet readily accessible from outside the truck, three reels mounted in the rear of the vehicle connected to the hydraulic pump (three different colored hoses), hydraulic tools mounted near the reels providing quick connection and deployment (grab-and-go capabilities), quick connection couplings on the hydraulic hoses and tools which provide prompt initial setup as well as swapping tools. There is also a portable hydraulic pump and 30-foot lengths of hydraulic hose set up to be portable. A generator provides power for on-scene lighting and two reciprocating saws.

Training commitments included an all-day academy where members were educated on safety, response, scene control, cooperation with other agencies, and concluded with an afternoon of learning and practicing prying and cutting techniques using donated vehicles. Monthly drill sessions included “opening” vehicles, equipment familiarization, driver training, and locked vehicle entry.

Standard Operating Procedures and Policies are being reviewed and updated, and will be distributed to team members providing guidance, and ensuring consistent delivery of extrication operations.

Member commitment to training, education, team work, and use of the upgraded tools has resulted in efficient operations on scene.

The CFAA Access Team asks drivers to be careful as they travel, and assure drivers they will be there should the need arise.

County liability insurance rates remain stable

A representative of the county’s insurance provider, KCAMP, told the commission Monday the county has a higher than average loss ratio.

In 2007, the county’s loss ratio was a little more than 100 percent, in 2008, it was 247 percent, in 2009, it was 48 percent, and last year, it was 126 percent.
The county’s four-year average loss ratio is 134 percent.

If KCAMP was a commercial insurer, it would need its insured clients to have a loss ratio of about 60 percent to make money. A loss ration more than 100 percent means the county filed more in claims than it paid in premiums.
The county’s largest loss last year was a fire than destroyed a scrapper. A hydraulic hose burst, spewed hydraulic fluid on the engine, and the piece of equipment caught fire.

John Waltner, county administrator, said the equipment had recently been serviced, and he did not know what the county could have done to prevent the fire. That claim was for $150,000.

The county pays about $146,000 per year for insurance. That covers everything except worker’s compensation.

Despite having a loss ratio higher than some other counties in the state, the county’s insurance rate drooped last year by 1.3 percent.

Larry Sharp, KCAMP
representative, attributed this to a soft insurance market.

In other business, the county:

• Approved the purchase of four $20 road signs to designate the TransAmerica Bicycle Trail through Harvey County.
• Approved a memorandum of understanding between the Harvey County Health Department and the Health Ministries on the coordinating of care between the two entities. Health Ministries will serve as the medical primary care provider for clients both entities serve.
• Appointed Tim Johnson and Richard Denno to the Public Building Commission.
• Reappointed Neva Frey and Dorothy Kennedy to the Harvey County Council on Aging.
• Approved a memorandum that would give emergency management access to a list of residents with special needs in case of a disaster.
• Approved bylaws for the Kansas Local Emergency Planning Committee.
• Approved a Harvey County Emergency Operations Plan.
• Approved the adoption of a resolution that would allow the emergency management director to make minor changes or corrections as needed to the emergency plan without the commission’s approval.

Professional Aviation Associates Named As Stratoflex and PPG Distributor

Professional Aviation Associates, a Greenwich AeroGroup company announced it recently signed an agreement with Parker Hannifin Corporation’s Stratoflex Products Division to be an Authorized Stratoflex Hose Distributor.

Professional Aviation has a long relationship with Stratoflex, manufacturing Technical Standard Order (TSO) hoses as a sub-distributor for Parker for the last 18 years. Professional Aviation’s current hose customers include the U.S. government, general aviation, the helicopter industry, original equipment manufacturers, fixed based operators, overhaul/repair shops and brokers/distributors.

Professional Aviation provides TSOA approved hose kits and custom hoses for fuel, oil and hydraulic systems. All of their fabricators, inspectors and the program manager are factory trained.

In addition to the Stratoflex agreement, Professional Aviation has also been named a PPG Aerospace – Transparencies Authorized Windshield Distributor. PPG rebuilds King Air and Beech 1900 windshields. Professional Aviation will be one of only six worldwide distributors.