MISSOULA – At their Administrative Meeting Jan. 14, the Missoula County Commissioners discussed a letter regarding complaints they have received concerning the medical care being provided by the Seeley Lake Ambulance. The letter was sent to the Board of Medical Examiners and Seeley Lake Fire Board Chair.
Missoula County Chief Administrative Officer Chris Lounsbury introduced the letter and explained the commissioners have received complaints about the medical care being provided by the Seeley Lake Ambulance. He explained that while the Commissioners don’t have oversight over the rural fire districts or medical service in Montana, the intent of the letter was to bring the general nature of the public’s complaints to the attention of the letter recipients. Since the Seeley Lake Fire District and Ambulance Service are a combined service, the Fire District Chair Scott Kennedy was included along with Sam Hunthausen, executive office of the Board of Medical Examiners.
The letter stated that while the commissioners typically direct concerns to the appropriate local authority, in this case, after making the referrals, “We have heard from those we referred that they felt their concerns were not adequately addressed. As we are charged with the health and safety of our community, we feel it our duty to pass those concerns on to the Board of Medical Examiners, which oversees the Emergency Medical Service (EMS) system, through its licensing of both EMS and Emergency Medical Technicians (EMTs).”
The general nature of the complaints, as outlined by the letter, was the level of care and response was inadequate and the oversite by their medical director was lax. In one case, 30 minutes elapsed until Seeley Lake unit indicated they were responding to a male with difficult breathing. In another, a male with a history of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) waited more than 19 minutes for responders to be enroute. In another instance, Missoula Emergency Services, Inc. (MESI), which provides Advanced Life Support (ALS), was canceled delaying transport for the critically injured patient who later died. A fourth call was also included in the attachment following the meeting that was not included in the letter discussion where a second caller waited 19 minutes for the ambulance to go enroute. All calls were from 2020.
“We are not in a position of authority to regulate or adjudicate concerns regarding the fire district,” said Commissioner Chair Dave Strohmaier. “We are in a position of hearing from our constituents and directing their concerns to the appropriate adjudicating body.”
During the meeting, Seeley Lake Fire Chief Dave Lane spoke to the commissioners about several concerns he had with the letter. He and Kennedy were the other members of the public that spoke at the meeting.
First, he and Kennedy were notified of the meeting on social media the night before. This did not give them any time to put together a response. The specific calls that the letter referenced were also not included for review prior to the meeting.
“I am responsible for the operations of our District and I feel that as Director Kennedy has said I have most of your information if you just talk to me,” said Lane.
“I’ve been around a long time. Chief Lane has brought a lot of positives to the community and those items are not talked about here. It is always those one or two minor or major incidences that we try and do better next time,” said Kennedy.
Lane said he was troubled that they disrespect the District’s medical director saying that he has been lax in his duties. Since no one has contacted Lane, the commissioners don’t know what the medical director’s duties are or how he has performed them.
Strohmaier said it is not the Commissioners’ role to adjudicate these disputes.
“It would not be accurate to say that in our letter we are alleging that there has been lax oversight by the medical director. That is something someone else is suggesting is the case,” said Strohmaier. “We are conveying those concerns of Missoula County constituents to the board and they can use their discretion and regulatory authority to decide whether the concerns are valid or not.”
“These are the complaints that we are relaying and we have heard, not that we are claiming ourselves,” Commissioner Juanita Vero added.
Another concern Lane raised at the meeting was the accusation that the District did not utilize proper ALS resources. In the supplemental information regarding the call provided after the meeting, it states that Seeley Lake ambulance, MESI and Life Flight were dispatched at 4:07 p.m. to an accident at Rice Ridge Road and Highway 83 on July 13. Lane was enroute by 4:09 p.m. followed by MESI at 4:10 p.m. Lane canceled MESI after he had been on scene for nearly five minutes and the ambulance had arrived.
In his follow up correspondence with the Pathfinder, Lane wrote that he cancelled the other ambulance responding since it was coming from Missoula and “was not going to provide any different care than what was taking place. This in no way affected the transportation of this patient. Our patient was flown by helicopter to the hospital where later they sadly succumbed to their injuries.”
Regarding use of ALS service, Lane pointed out to the commissioners in the meeting that the Swan Valley Emergency Services consistently rendezvous with MESI in Seeley Lake even though for “whatever political reasons” the Seeley Lake Ambulance is 30-50 miles closer. The Seeley Lake ambulance is permitted as a Basic Life Support service with an ALS endorsement.
Both Lane and Kennedy said these concerns raised in the letter have already been addressed at the fire board level. The only complaints they have heard are those voiced publicly at board meetings. Those complaints and the response given are in the meeting minutes. The county has not requested the minutes or asked if they addressed the issues.
“The negativity is coming from a group of people that has terminated communication, that have terminated their relationship with the District whether voluntarily or not,” said Lane. “They are misdirecting their anger towards my staff and my administration.”
While the names of those filing the complaints were never released in the meeting or in the letter sent by the commissioners, Lane further explained in a comment to the Pathfinder following the meeting that the group of citizens alleging concerns are former volunteers that have been relieved of their duties or their friends. He said this group pats themselves on the back, listens to their scanners scrutinizing every call, and bullies and belittles anyone that has nice words for the department.
“I feel that it is important to share that most recently, members from the community have bypassed the Fire Chief and District board of Trustees to make their “concerns” known to the Missoula County Commissioners,” Lane wrote in his statement to the Pathfinder following the meeting.
In response to the slow response times, Lane asked the commissioners to what standard they are being held. He said they are a small, volunteer department that doesn’t have the funds to hire responders.
“Our volunteers respond from work or home at any hour. The incidents of “concern” involved volunteers responding from home. They had to get ready, drive to the station, don the appropriate PPE, and then respond to the call,” wrote Lane in his response to the Pathfinder following the meeting. “Reviewing the “concerns” noted in the County Commissioners correspondence, the response times are acceptable for this volunteer Department.”
The Missoula County 9-1-1 Dispatch records for the calls with the 19-minute response listed in the letter show both were on the weekend, Sunday, April 26 and Saturday, Oct. 31.
The commissioner letter notes on the medical BLS call Wednesday, Sept. 23 to Hauser Lane that was dispatched at 3:08 p.m., “nothing heard from Seeley until [3:22 p.m.] when 719 [ambulance] requested we page out MESI. This was after the caller recontacted and 9-1-1 sent out second page.”
The commissioner’s letter does not include that, according to 9-1-1 Dispatch log for Sept. 23, the ambulance was dispatched to a medial BLS call at Moose Lane in Seeley Lake at 8:37 a.m. The ambulance arrived on scene at 9:06 a.m. The ambulance was also dispatched to a public assist call at 1:50 p.m. at 500 W Broadway, Missoula. The ambulance arrived on scene at 2:50 p.m. It is noted in the commissioner’s letter that 729, the second ambulance, was the ambulance paged out to Hauser Lane.
While the commissioners did not vote on the letter, the Commissioners office confirmed it was signed. Strohmaier added that he appreciates the work that the volunteer fire boards and firefighters do and the challenge that it is to attract members.
“This [letter] should not be seen as any indication of our lack of appreciation for what you are doing,” Strohmaier said. “But it is reflective of what we see is our responsibility to represent our constituents and direct their concerns to the appropriate bodies.”
“This Administration takes every ‘concern’ seriously,” wrote Lane in his follow-up comments to the Pathfinder. “All correspondence and public meeting comments are addressed and documented. We are currently developing a plan to improve response times and upgrade our ambulance service operating permit to ALS. The COVID-19 pandemic has not deterred our volunteers from their calls for aid. I am proud to work with such a dedicated and professional group of people as we serve our community. Open your eyes and see that the District is moving forward and continuing to provide care to our community.”
The letter and supporting documents is available at https://www.seeleylake.com/home/customer_files/article_documents/2021-010_seeley_lake_ambulance_concerns.pdf
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