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CABARRUS COUNTY FIRST RESPONDER PROGRAM SECTION 1: Purpose for First Responder Program The Cabarrus County Emergency Medical Service has transport vehicles certified by the North Caroltna Office of Emergency Medical Services (OEMS), which are manned by personnel trained and certified as Emergency Medical Technicians(EMT), Emergency Medical Technicians Intermediate (EMT- i), Emergency Medical. Technician - Advanced Intermediate (EMT-AI] and Paramedics (EMT-P). The service has three (3) stations which serve the county. The main station is located in the northwest part of Concord. One satellite station is located at Highway 601 and Ilighway. 49 which provides a quicker response time' to citizens residing in areas along Highways 601, 49, and 24-2?. A second satellite station is locsted on Jackson Street in Mount Pleasant and provides coverage for the northeast section of the couuty. The response ti~e from either the main oF satellite stations to the southern or northwestern sections of the county remaln relatively htgh~ with a response time to these areas of 13 to 15 minutes. The primary goal of an emergency medical service system is to reduc~ the probability of death of a victim by providing trained, woll-equipped personnel at the scene of an accident or illness in a prompt, efficient, and coordinated manner. Research studies indicate that fifty percent of'those who die from traumatic injuries die outside the hospital emergency department. Seventy percent of our nation's traffic fatalities occur in rural areas; howe~er, rural areas represent only forty percent of~the nation's population. The ACT Foundation (Advanced Coronary Treatment) reported that the chances for recovery of a victim in ventricular fibrillation (a form of cardiac arrest) is 25 out of 100 when the medical response time is within five minutes. The rate drops to l out of 100 when the medical response time is 10 minutes. A victim of cardiac arrest may die in 4-6 minutes. It is not ee6nomically feasible'to operate and maintain an ambulance service in every town and ~unctton in the county. Mowever, it ls most desirable to have medically trained personnel located in close proximity to the citizens so that life sustaining measures may be given in the first few mtnu~es after the occurrence of an accident or illness. A First Responder Program is a logical and economically feasible way to insure tha~ prehospltal care is available to the rural citizens in the first ~inutcs when life or death may be decided. SECTION 2: Requirements for Certification of a First Responder Agency or an Individual First Respoader. 1. No agency or department shall furnish, operate, conduct, maintain, advertise, be engaged tl~ or profess to be engaged in service as a first responder agency unless that agency holds s currently valid certificate to operate as a first responder agency issued by the Cabarrus County Office of Emergency Services and approved by the Cabarrus County Board of Commissioners or its designated representative- 2. No person shall operate, conduct, maintain, advertise be engaged in or profess to be engaged in business or service of a first