COUNCIL DISTRICT:
City-wide
Approval of an agreement with Howard E. Michaels, M.D. to serve as Medical Director of the Fire Department EMS program for the period from July 1, 2001 to June 30, 2002 in an amount not to exceed $84,304. Under this agreement, Dr. Michaels will provide medical control and oversight for the City’s emergency medical services including emergency medical dispatch and the Metropolitan Medical Task Force (MMTF).
BACKGROUND
Dr. Howard Michaels has been under contract to provide medical oversight for the Fire Department’s Emergency Medical Services Program (EMS) beginning in 1992. Since that time, the responsibilities of the Medical Director have been expanded and a Request for Proposals (RFP) for Medical Director Services was developed in February 2000 in response to direction from the City Manager’s Office. The RFP specified that the Medical Director was required to provide medical control and oversight for the EMS program including both Advanced Life Support (ALS) and Basic Life Support (BLS), the Emergency Medical Dispatch Priority Reference System (EMPDRS), and the Weapons of Mass Destruction program (WMD).
Dr. Michaels was selected as the Medical Director for the Fire Department’s EMS program because he was the only applicant meeting all the requirements who submitted a formal response. Furthermore, with more than twenty-five years of emergency medicine practice and his previous experience as a Medical Director for other agencies, Dr. Michaels was an extremely qualified candidate. The scope and level of services that Dr. Michaels provided in his previous tenure with the City have always been responsive to the needs of the Fire Department.
Dr. Michaels has played an integral role in the development, evolution, and maintenance of the Fire Department's EMS program. As the EMS consultant, he reviews and provides input into the development of operational policies and procedures that impact patient care.
Specifically, the consultant:
1. Provides medical control and oversight for the City EMS program.
2. Provides medical control and oversight for the City Defibrillation program.
3. Provides medical control and oversight for the City Emergency Medical Dispatch Priority System (EMDPS).
4. Designs, evaluates, and administers a continuous quality improvement (CQI) and a comprehensive quality assurance program (CQA).
5. Provides medical oversight of EMS curriculum development and education.
6. Assists in the administration and support of the EMS program.
7. Performs ongoing evaluation of ALS and BLS program effectiveness by collecting and evaluating data.
8. Carrying out research and development in the field of pre-hospital care to help the EMS program improve its emergency service responses.
9. Proposes bio-medical equipment enhancements and recommends equipment changes to ensure that the Fire Department remains “state of the art” in prehospital care and is compliant with County requirements.
10. Responds to emergency incidents as requested by the Fire Department and assumes a medical command role in the patient treatment area of disasters or mass casualty incidents. The Medical Director’s obligations shall be limited to liaison or technical specialist, providing medical advice to the Incident Commander.
11. Provides medical liaison between the San Jose Fire Department and Office of Emergency Services for the Metropolitan Medical Task Force (MMTF).
Dr. Michaels also represents the City of San Jose with the local medical community including the Santa Clara County Emergency Medical Services Agency, American Medical Response, and local hospitals. The local emergency medical community supports Dr. Michaels’ continuation as San Jose’s emergency medical consultant.
The City Attorney’s Office agreement prepared the agreement in conjunction with Risk Management.
Funds are included in the Fire Department’s 2001-02 Proposed Operating Budget to support this agreement.
Fund: General Fund - 001
Amount: $84,304
Budget Document: 2001-02 Proposed Operating Budget, Page 205
Program: Bureau of Education and Training
MANUEL ALARCON
Fire Chief