PASCACK VALLEY—Four Pascack Valley towns are expected to approve resolutions to fund a joint ambulance services study aimed at addressing the shortage of volunteers during weekday, daytime hours.
Hillsdale approved a resolution on July 16 to conduct a joint feasibility study with the Township of River Vale and the Borough of Old Tappan “to assess providing joint ambulance services” for the towns.
The proposed study will be conducted by MTP Group of Sparta “to evaluate each town’s current ambulance services … and to project the cost and service level of a future paid per-diem service model,” according to the Hillsdale resolution.
Pascack Press recently learned that Township of Washington officials had also expressed interest in joining the study.
Most officials told Pascack Press they anticipated approval of funding resolutions for the joint study at their August council meetings.
If the four towns join the study, it will cost each an estimated $4,350. Hillsdale approved its resolution without much public discussion. Pascack Press reached out to the other three towns to discuss the study. Washington Township Mayor Peter Calamari told us, “Daytime coverage is becoming more of a challenge. This is a matter of public safety. I will have the topic on the agenda for the next council meeting [Aug. 12] with a request that the council allocate the funds for the multi-town study.”
Hillsdale began a “combined” paid and volunteer ambulance service last September, and a recent report by ambulance officials showed that response times have decreased, with timely medical care arriving on scene in about five minutes. (“Combined paid/volunteer ambulance service proves quicker,” Michael Olohan, Pascack Press, July 29, 2024.)
Responding to continuously low levels of volunteers for the ambulance squad, Hillsdale squad members and the Borough Council joined last year to staff the ambulance service with a paid daytime crew of EMTs, when most calls generally occur.
At Hillsdale’s July 16 meeting, chief Justin Eliopoulos, director of Hillsdale’s per-diem ambulance staff, and Mark Greenwood, deputy director, provided a nine-month progress report on using the combined paid-volunteer ambulance service. Volunteers generally staff weeknights and weekends, they said.
Asked about the study, River Vale administrator Gennaro Rotella said, “Why reinvent the wheel? Let’s do the study and see what it says.”
Like most suburban towns, he said the Township of River Vale was struggling with daytime, weekday staffing of its volunteer ambulance service.