City of Poughkeepsie EMS Provider

[WAS967 97]

Heard a rumor recently that Alamo was losing the contract for the City of Pughkeepsie and that it was going to be split between MLSS and Arlington. Anyone able to verify this? Thanks.

Edited December 30, 2005 by WAS967

[x129K 1,393]

As far as I know nothing is changing with the exception of EMS calls now being dispatched with Alamo/City Fire tone combo. The vernacular is changed to now state, "City 911 to Engine ? and Alamo, respond for...."

There has never been a contract with the City and Alamo - merely a longstanding verbal agrrement.

It seems far fetched that Arlington would take over some of the City due to municipalty conflict.

Edited January 3, 2006 by Ole129K

[TRUCK6018 50]

It seems far fetched that Arlington would take over some of the City due to municipalty conflict.

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I was thinking the same thing. The Arlington Fire District runs the EMS in that part of the town. Being it's subsidised by tax dollars, they can't just start covering another district without public referendums and such. Also, being run by a fire district, they can charge for services.

[AFD_32_4 0]

Arlington is not in the process of doing EMS calls in the city. We only do mutual aid calls for an ambulance only in the event that Alamo is out of rigs and it is done under the County mutual aid protacol.

[Guest alsfirefighter]

Alamo runs out of rigs? Noooooo.

Not speaking for anyone, just my own observations, but Arlington is busy enough with their own district.

Anyone know why commerical ambulances have to call out where they are responding from the past year or so?

[AFD_32_4 0]

Arlington is a fire district, paid by the tax base of the Town of Poughkeepsie and can't contract to do EMS outside of our area. We do mutual aid for the city for an ambulance only under the County mutual aid plan. We do not provide paramedic services to the city.

Heard a rumor recently that Alamo was losing the contract for the City of Pughkeepsie and that it was going to be split between MLSS and Arlington. Anyone able to verify this? Thanks.

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[TRUCK6018 50]

I was thinking the same thing.  The Arlington Fire District runs the EMS in that part of the town.  Being it's subsidised by tax dollars, they can't just start covering another district without public referendums and such.  Also, being run by a fire district, they can charge for services.

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Typo: They can not charge for services.

[Guest Orpi442]

Alamo runs out of rigs?  Noooooo.

Not speaking for anyone, just my own observations, but Arlington is busy enough with their own district.

Anyone know why commerical ambulances have to call out where they are responding from the past year or so?

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All, EMS units know have to call out from where they are responding from.

Basicly, After last summer o4. Alamo was responding to calls from the city to Wapp or beacon & so on. This actually continued over to Transcare as some claim.

So to keep everyone honest the Co. wants to know. But that really has not changed really anything. Plus, the non com services are usually coming out of there barn.

[Guest Orpi442]

As far as Alamo loosing the city! Anything is possible, but that has been said as long as they have been saying Empress was loosing Yonkers. The fact that I work for both, I have some idea. Next they will say is Regional is taking over Fishkill.

Woops did I just see a Regional bus!!!

Oh well it is fun to hear the rumors fly.

Oh did you also hear Alamo may go union? Rumor or Not!!!

[Guest alsfirefighter]

Orpi, I was being sarcastic. I've seen city buses roaring to Beacon, Wappinger units roaring to the city and so on. Being I've also worked for them and actually have sat in a bus with you, I have been sent to some really stupid calls from far reaches of the areas they were supposed to be covering by contract. Perhaps if they stop sending ambulances on wheel chair runs maybe then they wouldn't run into some of the problems. Let's take a ALS bus out of service to do a wheel chair run. I got sent to a chest pain call to a nursing home in Putnam from Fishkill and my patient was a unstable V-tach. Not smart. 3 units in Wappingers lets strip them for transports and try to cover an area that is supposed to have 2 ambulances and try to cover a huge area with 1. Not smart.

Alamo union...what like Sloper did and got nowhere in the over 2 year span it took to even have a proposed contract.

[parapup203 0]

That's been a rumor for awhile now. Haven't heard too much about it recently. If Alamo keeps going the way they are going, they are going to lose a lot of contracts. I've even heard that Vassar is calling other companies in to do outgoing transports. Actually I know because I've seen Transcare and Mobile take out neonate runs.

[201/65 94]

Alamo isnt the only amb co sendin units from far reaches to do calls. Ive recently heard MLSS dispatching units from Stn. 3 on Rt. 32 in the Tn of Newburgh to ALS emergencies in Fishkill. MLSS has have the majority of Orange contracts for many years and in the last few since they've taken contracts in Dutchess, they've already lost 1/2 of Orange not to mention alot of their employee's have been leaving and going to Regional EMS, higher wages, who in the last 2 years has taken over a very significant part of the county. More and more MLSS has had trouble staffing rigs in Orange and has also given up alot of area in Ulster to Alamo. More and more i hear 718 (Orange EMS Dispatch) advising no MLSS units available. And and my corps has either transported ALS pts. w/ BLS care or drove 15-20 mins before we can meet up with a Regional Rig.

[Guest Orpi442]

Folks, I agree with everything you are saying and cann't argue with you except the union stuff. These companies have spread themsilfs so thin & they really appear not to care about the employees that walk in the office. Plus the big problem that we see part of is management says one thing to our or their contracted companies & the dispatchers don't do what management tells the contracts.

The dispatchers duck for cover and just don't think on the resourses. I have never seen Empress cought with their pants down like Alamo. I'm not saying that Empress is always right or anything like that, but look at their call volume which is 4x Alamos & has more truck on the road, & a solid well planned weekly work schedule, & of course pays more. Oh did I say they are UNION. The company has done 100% better with the union than before.

Yes, Slopper employees did get screwed by Slopper. The union did drop the ball also, but everyone in the union was so new to the workings & did not know who to call to for help till it was to late.

Alamo has tossed pay increase to medics, saying it is to help the medics keep up their certs. All well and good but nothing to the EMT's as per Management & Several sups (EMTs are a dime a dozen) "no problem thanks for the support" Alamo, Oh of course what about me I am a I Macked with the region and working.

Not paid any more than any other EMT. I am ACLS PHTLS Pals & a CPR Instructor.

I have to meet all the same requirement that Medic do with the region. I do my skills when asked with out hesitation. Have several Dr.s support at regional Hospitals. The company will not resourse me or pay me for my certs.

As for union yes it is on the ground. There is a group that is gathering info and planning. I am not saying it is a done deal. But I think the lack of payroll, & the EMTs are a dime a dozen may of actually started a back fire.

Only time will tell & with any luck 15 June I will pass my Medic God willing.

[jps385 0]

Alamo has aparantly lost the village of wapingers, and new ahmburg to tranascare, and have yet to resign the putnam contract. Any one have any info on there other areas , and who may be taking over?

[Guest PFD Medic 16]

Alamo has aparantly lost the village of wapingers, and new ahmburg to tranascare, and have yet to resign the putnam contract.  Any one have any info on there other areas , and who may be taking over?

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The Village of Wappingers Falls has informally decided on a new provider during it's work session this Wednesday past, and will make a formal announcement after this week's open session. Not at liberty to say who, but it's not the next door provider.

[Guest]

The Village of Wappingers Falls has informally decided on a new provider during it's work session this Wednesday past, and will make a formal announcement after this week's open session.  Not at liberty to say who, but it's not the next door provider.

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To add soe info. The village of wappingers has gone with a different agencey for their ems. Also New Hamburg has been talking with another agencey as well. Empire state also does ems out of the wingates in fishkill. Alamo is quickly loosing contracts. beekman fire is also looking to get rid of Alamo and going with transcare. This is all recent and updated info. As far as the City of Poughkeepsie goes, the city has finally got permission from the council to bid out for a a contract with commercial EMS. Alamo is not likely to get the contract since the times in the city on average is 10 mins or greater. Alamo also has proven that they cannot handle contracts well.

[BuffMedic236 0]

WOW!

[Beekman 5]

As much as I was a fan of Alamo and fought against the Town of Beekman hiring Sloper way back in the day, Alamo management has ignored Beekman's concerns about the constant mutual aid to Pawling and the recent spat of using the Town contract ambulance (34-72) to transport inmates from Greenhaven Correctional. The Fire District has requested that the Town of Beekman get solutions to the problems or some drastic action was proposed. I also learned that one of Beekman's neighbors doesn't have a contract with their provider and is looking for another provider as well.

[jps385 0]

Which company got village of Wapingers? It looks like a feeding frenzy is ensuing on the carcas of alamo. Will they have any contracts left in 6 months? If they don't start buying rigs they won't have any vehicles to respond with anyway. And as they don't seem to be coming up with any cash for the emloyees they won't have anyone to respond anyway.

[Guest]

Which company got village of Wapingers?  It looks like a feeding frenzy is ensuing on the carcas of alamo.  Will they have any contracts left in 6 months?  If they don't start buying rigs they won't have any vehicles to respond with anyway.  And as they don't seem to be coming up with any cash for the emloyees they won't have anyone to respond anyway.

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I believe it was Mobile life that got wappingers. I agree Alamo may not be anything but a transport company in 6 or more months.It is a shame Alamo used to be a great company years ago. I should know I used to work for them. I also used to work for Sloper in the early 90's. But times change and Alamo refuses to except that covering the emergencies is just as important as doing those transports. Yes the money is in the transport, however the company image comes from your emergency contracts. When you are over 15 min response times or respond from 2 towns away it doesnt look good. Management has never and will never listen to the employees. Managment was told over and over again by their employess that the transports should be seperate from the emergencies. I used to work for a company that you had a transport section and a emergency section and it worked well. Alamo continues to send their paramedic units or needless wheelchair transports. I also blame almo dispatchers, they claim to be system status dispatch. However their units pass each other code 3 going to calls that the other units are closer too. Alamo needs to get rid of all of their management and start all over again and hire from the outside.

[Guest Orpi442]

Which company got village of Wapingers?  It looks like a feeding frenzy is ensuing on the carcas of alamo.  Will they have any contracts left in 6 months?  If they don't start buying rigs they won't have any vehicles to respond with anyway.  And as they don't seem to be coming up with any cash for the emloyees they won't have anyone to respond anyway.

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As Alamo employee & stationed at Pawling for 3/4 of my weekly shifts, I am not surprised. I do not understand why changes are not made for the positive. Plus what does surpise me is with some employees attempting to unionize at Alamo, & make a change before it is to late, I have not heard that it is "The unions fault".

I guess it is true that when you try to become big you truily become small.

[orangEMT246 6]

Hello, I just joined the group so please bear with me. A little about myself, I currently work for Alamo and I worked for Empress when the union was voted in. In Kingston where some of my shifts are, Alamo is using 2 of its 3 ALS rigs on wheelchair transports out of the N.E. Center for Special Care. The trips would be either to a doctors office in Kingston or even to Albany where we sit in a waiting room for hours on end because we left the wheelchair at the NECSC. Now a call goes out in Olive (we lost this contract earlier this year) and we have no units available. So the problems aren't just in Dutchess. The company needs to split into 911 and transport divisions as Empress did. Also the union would help morale (Hey, I'm a dime a dozen) and maybe some equipment will get replaced. BUT I see Alamo as a transport company by Jan. 1 of next year latest. Sorry, but the writing is on the wall if nothing changes soon. Thanks for letting me vent.

[Guest alsfirefighter]

Funny enough Beekman Sloper in my opinion did the best job for the Town of Beekman. Of all the times I did a Beekman shift when I worked there, they never pulled me out of Beekman for anything, no transports, no relocations, nothing. Unlike Alamo whom pulled me out of there to get to Greenhaven for a transport to back fill Beekman with another bus, instead of just sending them there, much like how they occassionally pulled the Pawling bus to go to the nursing home there and I've actually passed the bus they sent as a replacement. Nice dispatching and management guys. I always felt for the full time employees, I dealt with it at most 1 or 2 times a week. I used to tell the emt's go drive a bus its more money less BS.

This is nothing new, this was going on there and I was only a per diem and no surprise here, voiced my disbelief and concern over what they were doing. How can you maintain contract status when you pull an ambulance, ALS no less, to do a wheelchair transport. Ridiculous. If they wanted that they should take the emts off a couple ambulances and let them play wheel chair runners and keep ambulances on the road. Any problems they are having they bring on themselves in regard to contracts. If they are losing people then that is also on their management, and I'm gonna be a bit harsh here. Some of their supervisors are very good providers, but not managers, especially with employee relations. As one found out about 2 years ago when I used a narc at 10 in the morning, asked 4 or 5 times for my replacement. I get to St. Francis right before a huge snowstorm starts hitting us in Dutchess, 10 mins before my end of tour and he calls to come into the city to HQ for my replacement. When I advised him I get off in 10 mins, and that I asked for a replacement, he says "well its been busy". My answer, "no $hit, I was in the middle of it." After a you have to come in to get your new narc "NOW" that I need to take my career more seriously. I told him I do, that have a good career at Alamo and that I make more in my base salary in my "career" then he does as a supervisor and that his narcs and light blue shirt will be locked in the cabinet at the station I was working at. (I did a run to greenhaven from an area that they lost a contract too on the west side of dutchess, and they wonder why) Never been back and won't be back ever again.

[Guest]

Funny enough Beekman Sloper in my opinion did the best job for the Town of Beekman.  Of all the times I did a Beekman shift when I worked there, they never pulled me out of Beekman for anything, no transports, no relocations, nothing.  Unlike Alamo whom pulled me out of there to get to Greenhaven for a transport to back fill Beekman with another bus, instead of just sending them there, much like how they occassionally pulled the Pawling bus to go to the nursing home there and I've actually passed the bus they sent as a replacement.  Nice dispatching and management guys.  I always felt for the full time employees, I dealt with it at most 1 or 2 times a week.  I used to tell the emt's go drive a bus its more money less BS.

This is nothing new, this was going on there and I was only a per diem and no surprise here, voiced my disbelief and concern over what they were doing.  How can you maintain contract status when you pull an ambulance, ALS no less, to do a wheelchair transport.  Ridiculous.  If they wanted that they should take the emts off a couple ambulances and let them play wheel chair runners and keep ambulances on the road.  Any problems they are having they bring on themselves in regard to contracts.  If they are losing people then that is also on their management, and I'm gonna be a bit harsh here.  Some of their supervisors are very good providers, but not managers, especially with employee relations.  As one found out about 2 years ago when I used a narc at 10 in the morning, asked 4 or 5 times for my replacement.  I get to St. Francis right before a huge snowstorm starts hitting us in Dutchess, 10 mins before my end of tour and he calls to come into the city to HQ for my replacement.  When I advised him I get off in 10 mins, and that I asked for a replacement, he says "well its been busy".  My answer, "no $hit, I was in the middle of it."  After a you have to come in to get your new narc "NOW" that I need to take my career more seriously.  I told him I do, that have a good career at Alamo and that I make more in my base salary in my "career" then he does as a supervisor and that his narcs and light blue shirt will be locked in the cabinet at the station I was working at.  (I did a run to greenhaven from an area that they lost a contract too on the west side of dutchess, and they wonder why) Never been back and won't be back ever again.

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WOW, This is basically what I have been saying for years. Alamo managment refuses to listen to their employees. As far as supervisors he he he Alamo motto is "screw up move up" in my opinion. How can they make people supervisors after they themselves have been a problem for years not mentioning any names. A certain supervisor gets suspended for speeding to a call and complains about alamo all of the time then gets promoted. Another person defied supervisors about the uniform policy for 2 years and now that person is a supervisor. What happen to the Alamo I knew years ago where it was a privlage and honor to be an employee and even a supervisor. How can an EMT supervisor tell a paramedic how to handle a "narc" issue. Alamo is most def nearing the end. This is how sloper started to go when they were nearing the end of their time as a ambulance provider as well as CMT. For the most part the employees are trying and trying, but every time the employees do something good in the public, Alamo managment does soething to screw that image up..

[Guest Orpi442]

Any Word on who picked up the New Hamburg Contract. I remember about a year ago Kevin Ronk stated at a Staff Meeting, "We are at this time build on the contracts that we have & get the contracts we lost back". Well that was less than 8 months ago. Pete, is now gone and we lost more , and I don't recall getting any more back.

[Guest]

Any Word on who picked up the New Hamburg Contract.  I remember about a year ago Kevin Ronk stated at a  Staff Meeting, "We are at this time build on the contracts that we have & get the contracts we lost back".  Well that was less than 8 months ago.  Pete, is now gone and we lost more , and I don't recall getting any more back.

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As far as I know New Hamburg has not booted alamo yet but have been talking very seriously with Mobile Life. I agree about what kevin ronk said. When I first started at Alamo, Kevin was the leading force in its success, now that he is at Vassar I think he is the "weakest link". At this rate Mobile life wil get an influx of alamo employees applying.

[Guest]

All, EMS units know have to call out from where they are responding from.

Basicly,  After last summer o4.  Alamo was responding to calls from the city to Wapp or beacon & so on.  This actually continued over to Transcare as some claim.

So to keep everyone honest the Co. wants to know.  But that really has not changed really anything.  Plus, the non com services are usually coming out of there barn.

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hey orpi,

what you are claiming to have heard about Transcare.......drop it right there.

save that comment for when you get a clue.

As for that actual topic at hand. Well..........as long as calls get covered and patients get to hospital, whatever.