Facts about
volunteering at HFMVA
If you’ve ever had to call upon our
community’s emergency services, you know how valuable they can
be. No matter what type of call we’re responding to, your area
ambulance, fire and police responders take great pride in
serving Honeoye Falls, Mendon and the surrounding areas. We’d
like to invite you to join us in making this community a safer,
healthier place by volunteering at the Honeoye Falls - Mendon
Volunteer Ambulance (HFMVA).
This document
provides answers to commonly-asked questions about volunteering
at HFMVA. If you have a question that isn’t answered here, feel
free to call our volunteer recruitment line at 234-8760. A HFMVA
officer will return your call promptly.
What sorts
of volunteers are needed?
HFMVA
needs medics, drivers and support members. Medics are certified
as New York State emergency medical technicians, and provide
patient care throughout every call. Drivers provide a safe,
comfortable ride for patients and medics, and assist medics with
equipment and communication at the scene of a call. At least one
driver and medic are needed for each call to which HFMVA
responds.
Support members volunteer their time for various
“non-road” functions, such as assisting with the HFMVA treasury,
helping to maintain the building and grounds, supporting on-duty
crews or helping with administrative tasks. If you have a skill
that you believe could help HFMVA or its members, please
consider applying as a support member.
What are
HFMVA’s requirements for volunteers?
HFMVA
requires that medics and drivers provide a minimum of 22 service
hours per month. Since a typical overnight shift runs from 6PM
until 5AM, members who elect to work overnights meet their
hourly requirement after only two shifts. Since time spent
attending classes, participating in meetings or serving on
committees counts toward the monthly minimum, most members
easily meet the requirement.
When, where
and with whom will I work?
HFMVA
covers daytime shifts Monday through Saturday with career or
per-diem personnel. Volunteers cover overnights and Sunday days,
and are welcome to take daytime shifts with the paid staff at
any time.
Most HFMVA personnel stay at the ambulance base
for the duration of each shift. The crew quarters at the base
includes a full kitchen, bedrooms and showers. Those members
that live within a few minutes’ drive of the base sometimes “run
from home” during the overnight hours.
As a new HFMVA member, you may be assigned to an
overnight crew if your schedule allows. Crews work the same
night each week, and are headed by a crew chief who will assist
you throughout your training. Often, crews “drill” (or train on
a specific topic or piece of equipment) each shift in order to
keep everyone’s skills sharp.
What
training is provided? Is there any cost to me?
HFMVA
provides all required training free of charge. The minimum
required training at HFMVA is a current CPR certification - and
HFMVA provides CPR training in-house to any member that needs an
original or refresher course.
Drivers must complete the New York State
emergency vehicle operation course, an eight-hour seminar on the
legal, safety and operational aspects of driving ambulances and
other emergency vehicles. Medics may obtain any New York State
Department of Health certification, but training to the EMT-basic
level is required in order to act as the medic-in-charge aboard
an ambulance. This certification takes about 4 months to
complete, and classes are offered frequently throughout Monroe,
Livingston and Ontario counties.
In addition to completing the required classroom
training for medics and drivers, HFMVA maintains a “clearance”
(or precepting) process whereby new trainees in each position
work with experienced personnel to gain the street-smarts
necessary to handle calls without supervision. The length of
this process varies for each individual, but most people need
8-12 calls to “clear” in a particular position (depending on
their confidence level).
I already
work for another ambulance or fire company - can my previous
experience be counted?
HFMVA
is happy to recognize the experience and skills of those who
already serve (or have served in the past) with other agencies.
We ask that new members obtain a letter from their previous
agency’s chief or training officer, describing their
responsibilities and experience in the field.
What happens
when a call comes in?
Requests for HFMVA service are dispatched through the Monroe
County 911 center. Using radio and computer links, the county
dispatcher alerts the HFMVA on-duty crew to the nature, location
and severity of the call. As soon as a full crew is available,
they respond in one of HFMVA’s two ambulances. If a full crew is
not available, the dispatcher automatically re-routes the call
to the next closest agency.
HFMVA also has two first-response “fly cars” to
allow medics to respond to calls when no driver is available, or
to provide a medic-only response to nearby agencies. In these
situations, a full ambulance is provided by another agency, or a
HFMVA driver responds from home to bring our ambulance to the
scene.
How does
HFMVA work with other area responders?
Frequently, HFMVA works hand-in-hand with local fire and police
services. In some situations HFMVA assists these responders with
their duties, and at other times HFMVA receives their help. For
instance, a HFMVA crew might request a fire department response
to help lift a heavy patient. Alternately, fire and police
services frequently utilize HFMVA’s services when a suspect
experiences a medical problem or when firefighters need
rehabilitation during a long fire call.
HFMVA and other responders are often dispatched
together automatically - for instance, all three major services
respond to most motor vehicle accidents, house fires or cardiac
arrest calls. In addition, HFMVA works closely with the Mendon
Fire Department on every call that comes in from the hamlet of
Mendon due to the time required to get to locations in Mendon
from our quarters on East Street in Honeoye Falls.
How can I
join?
Those
wishing to learn more about joining HFMVA, or get an
application, can call our volunteer recruitment line at
234-8760. Alternately, just swing by the ambulance base to pick
up an application and talk to the duty crew about any questions
you may have. If you received this sheet as part of a new member
invitation kit, you should find a membership application in the
opposite pocket.
Once you submit a membership application, you
will be contacted by a HFMVA officer to schedule an interview.
This is an informal “get-to-know-you” type interview during a
HFMVA officers meeting. Following this interview, your
application will be submitted to the agency’s members for
acceptance. Membership meetings are held on the third
Wednesday of every month.
