POLAND, Ohio - An EMS report presented at the Western Reserve Fire District's September meeting showed some rather concerning results for the Poland Township and Village.

The report shows that EMS services in the area are on thin ice with some residents needing to wait nearly an hour just for help to arrive.

EMS was originally introduced as a solution to accidental death and disability from trauma, but has since evolved to respond to all medical and trauma emergencies.

At June's board meeting, it was reported that the Fire District could expect to respond to more medical calls, as AMR availability is at an all-time low. 

And because the Western Reserve Fire District is strictly a volunteer fire department, firefighters have very limited availability. That's why a levy is being proposed to solve the problem.

The levy will provide four part time firefighters EMTs/paramedics per shift to operate Poland-based ambulances.

It will be a 2.75 mills continuous levy and will cost $92.65 annually for a home valuation of $100,000. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Poland reduced its tax levy mileage by .8 mills, which makes the levy a net increase of 1.95 mills.

If passed, this levy will offer quicker response times for medical emergencies. Plus, Poland residents will not be billed by the district for ambulance services. 

The Western Reserve Fire District's ambulances have lifesaving equipment that private ambulance services do not offer such as an automatic CPR machine, heart monitors that transfer EKGs to the hospital, an EZ IO drill for emergency vascular access and much more.