Colonie, NY –The Town of Colonie Department of Emergency Medical Services announces an award of $2.4 million by the U.S. Department of Transportation under the Safe Streets For All (SS4A) Grant Program[i].
The SS4A Grant Program aims to improve safety and help prevent deaths and serious injuries on the nation’s roadways by direct funding at the local level. The Colonie EMS Department has created a collaborative demonstration project titled The Responder & Patient Safety Improvement Project. The project, led by the Colonie’s EMS Department in partnership with the Colonie Police Department, and bordering Emergency Medical Services agencies - the Town of Guilderland EMS Department and the Clifton Park Halfmoon Emergency Corps, which together respond to over 30 miles of high-speed roadways including sections of I-87 Northway, I-90, State Route 7, and I-787.
“Our Colonie EMS Department has applied for and has been awarded grant funding to foster a reduction in the possibility of injury or death on our roadways while providing emergency service and to streamline post-crash care. Our goal in the Town of Colonie is to enhance roadway safety and post-crash care. With this Federal grant, our Town will be leading the charge to safer streets and enhancing post-crash care,” said Peter G. Crummey, Colonie Town Supervisor.
The pilot demonstration will be a two-sided approach focused on the prevention of avoidable crashes and the improvement of post-crash care when an incident does occur.
The planned demonstration activities will explore several innovative emergency response technologies. This includes systems for alerting drivers about nearby emergency vehicles at accident scenes, and a platform that accesses specialized health registries to aid responders in treating crash victims efficiently. In addition, the aim is to build a comprehensive initiative involving stakeholder engagement, research best practices, and conduct data analysis to develop a Prehospital Health and Safety Information Exchange. The results of this initiative will then be used to implement these positive changes on a larger scale.
The partnership intends to engage community members and stakeholders at various levels of government by working closely with the Capital Region Transportation Council, the designated Metropolitan Planning Organization for the Capital Region.
“Emergency response strategies are critical to reducing fatal and serious injury crashes. As we work to develop a Vision Zero Safety Action Plan for the Capital Region, this demonstration project will provide us with valuable information. We look forward to collaborating with Colonie EMS and its partners on this innovative project”
Sandra Misiewicz, Executive Director of the Capital Region Transportation Council
“This two-sided approach first recognizes that our personnel are our most important asset. Operating on any roadway, especially those with vehicles traveling at high speeds, is especially hazardous and protecting our personnel must be a priority,”
Chief Paul Sugrue, Colonie EMS
“Traffic safety is one of the highest priorities for the Colonie Police Department. We are excited for the opportunity to collaborate towards solutions that will improve the safety of our roadways,” Chief Michael Woods, Colonie Police
“This regional collaboration has a significant opportunity to impact our most vulnerable patients. If our patient cannot communicate what their needs are it makes it more challenging to provide optimal care. Working to establish pathways to integrate existing data into EMS patient encounters, as well as ongoing hospital care, will improve outcomes." Dr. Michael Dailey, of Albany Medical Center, Colonie EMS Medical Director
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Colonie EMS responds to over 14,000 emergency 911 calls annually and employs one hundred trained rescue paramedics and EMTs serving as a department of local government since 1989.