Using grant money and funding from philanthropic organizations, Rob’s Rescue, an initiative that will be part of the Greene County Community Foundation, hopes soon to outfit one of Beavercreek Fire Department’s ambulances with a cable and ramp system to help lift morbidly obese patients into the unit, said Rich Schultze, the chair of the group.
Another goal is to purchase a bariatric cot, which is much wider and can handle greater weights than typical cots, and to create a database for emergency responders indicating where morbidly obese patients live so they can bring the right resources.
The project is expected to cost about $20,000 and would be a model for other emergency agencies in the county, said Beavercreek fire Lt. Bryon Betsinger.
Paramedics and EMTs are responding in recent years to more calls involving patients who are morbidly obese, representatives of several agencies said.
More than 67 percent of the adult population in the U.S. is overweight or obese and about 6 percent is morbidly obese, characterized by being at least 100 pounds overweight, Anderson-Gold said.
The Dayton Fire Department, which handles about 24 incidents annually involving extremely obese patients, uses a homemade tarp called the “big people mover” to carry and transport overweight patients to the ambulance, Lt. Paul Sheehan said.
“A couple of times a month we run into somebody who is very large and who is going to cause us to get creative with their removal,” he said. “Most people we have are in the 400-, 500- and 600-pound range.”
Although paramedics and EMTs are trained in proper lifting techniques, they still risk injury when transporting heavy patients. The Dayton Fire Department is looking at purchasing bariatric equipment, including a sturdier cot, but the $10,000 to $12,000 price tag is an obstacle, Sheehan said.
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