WESTFIELD — In an effort to crack down on non-emergency responses, the Westfield Fire Department has successfully reduced calls from residential care facilities by 25%.
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This all stems from a July city ordinance that enables fines for extended care facilities that frequently call for ambulances when transport isn't actually needed.
"Anytime we would respond to a non-emergent call where we didn't have to transport somebody, that's taken an ambulance out of service for the city," Lieutenant Ryan Herron, Public Information Officer for the Westfield Fire Department, explained.
The result often meant diverted resources and longer response times for other emergencies.
"Since that ordinance has passed, we've seen a 25% reduction in calls to extended care facilities," Lt. Herron said.
Despite this reduction, the department's overall call volume has increased.
"Even with that decrease, our overall run load has went up 12%. So with an increased run load, it's making sure that we have more apparatus in service for when an actual emergency happens," Lt. Herron highlighted.
City leaders praised these results during a recent public works meeting, noting the quick impact of the policy changes.
"That 25% reduction is impressive when you consider just the short proportion of the year that some of those policies were in effect. People saw incentives, and they reacted to them," a city official said.
Now, the focus for Westfield Fire turns to education.
"We send our community paramedic, Walter Rippy, into the facilities to work with them on; can this be handled in-house? Do you actually need an ambulance transport? It's beneficial for everyone," explained Lt. Herron. "It keeps our apparatus in service, and it prevents unnecessary ambulance billing for the facilities."
WRTV visited three residential care facilities in Westfield to hear their thoughts on the ordinance and whether it has changed their procedures for calling 911. None was available to comment publicly.
Westfield Fire Department officials provided the following guidelines on what symptoms warrant a 911 emergency:
- Unresponsive/ Loss of Consciousness
- Breathing problems
- Unable to speak in full sentences
- Sudden change mental status
- Seizures
- First Time or Longer than Normal
- Chest pain
- PLUS: Lightheadness, fatigue, nausea, cold sweat, shortness of breath, numbness
- Cough/Vomit blood
- Unstoppable bleeding
- Sudden NEW dizziness or weakness
- Sudden vision change
- Severe abdominal pain
- After head injury:
- Confusion, decreased level of alertness, headache, vomiting
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Logan MacDonald is the In Your Community multimedia journalist for Hamilton County. He joined WRTV in 2025. Logan loves to tell stories that hold the powerful accountable and give a voice to communities in need. Share your story ideas and important issues with Logan by emailing him at logan.macdonald@wrtv.com.
