OPERATIONS

Emergency Medical Services

The Durham Fire Department acts as a primary responder service to the Town of Durham and the University of New Hampshire by providing the patients with the highest level of prehospital medicine possible until an ambulance service arrives. Patient care is then transferred to the ambulance members. If the ambulance crew is unable to provide the highest medical certification needed for the patient, Fire personnel maintain patient care and respond to the hospital in the ambulance.

Before 1991 all members of the Fire Department were registered as basic EMTs. The Department now responded to all medical emergencies with a minimum of EMT-Intermediate level technicians. Three Firefighters have obtained the highest level of prehospital certification as Paramedics. Durham Fire personnel are a dedicated team of professionals who look forward to future advances in the medical field, and their role in saving lives and preventing needless suffering to those in our community.

In 2001, the University of New Hampshire purchased and placed into service eleven automatic external cardiac defibrilators. These units are placed throughout campus to improve the delivery of emergency medicine on campus.

Firefighter James Lapolla (l.) and Chief Ron O'Keefe (r.) with recently purchased automatic external cardiac defibrilators (AEDs).