Ambulance Services
Emergency Coverage for Baxter and Marion Counties
In 1974, the newly established basic ambulance service at Baxter Regional
consisted of two ambulances and a crew of eight. Of the crew, half were
emergency medical technicians (EMTs) and half were laymen who served as
ambulance drivers. The team responded to 804 calls that year. As the hospital’s
service-area population continued to grow, so did the need for expanded
pre-hospital care.
In 1985, Baxter Regional’s ambulance service became the first full-service
paramedic operation in the North Central Arkansas region. Our ambulance
service consists of emergency medical dispatchers (EMDs), EMTs and paramedics.
Our ambulances cover all of Baxter and Marion counties, which include
approximately 1,120 square miles of land and water. We also serve Izard,
Fulton and Searcy counties in Arkansas and Ozark County in Missouri with
mutual aid response when requested.
Highly Trained Emergency Experts
Because Baxter Regional is a paramedic service, our emergency medical staff
is continually receiving training in the latest emergency medical treatments.
Some training courses include:
- Basic Life Support (CPR)
- Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS)
- Basic Trauma Life Support (BTLS)
- Pediatric Advanced Life Support (PALS)
In addition, staff also attend a 48-hour refresher course every two years
for paramedic recertification by the Arkansas Department of Health and
participate in a variety of seminars and practice exercises.
Help Us Help You When Requesting an Ambulance
The most important thing to do is to remain on the phone and let the dispatcher
hang up first. If the patient has any change in his or her condition,
you can tell the dispatcher and he/she can immediately relay it to the
ambulance crew en-route.
Make sure you are prepared with the following in the event of an emergency:
- Provide the phone number you are calling from, in case the call is disconnected.
- Have a precise set of directions written down by your home phone to tell
the dispatcher exactly how to get to your location from the hospital.
- Be prepared to tell the dispatcher the patient’s primary medical
complaint when you call, such as chest pain or trouble breathing. This
information helps the dispatcher determine if the situation is an emergency
or nonemergency.
- Have a written list of the patient’s medical history, current medications
and dosages. Emergency personnel can obtain records from the Baxter Regional
health information department, but this takes time and may not include
recent medications.
We sincerely offer our thanks to area fire and police departments, who
continually provide outstanding support in emergency patient care. We
greatly appreciate the help!