Hoping to cut the response time to emergency calls almost in half, Wheaton is considering operating its own paramedic service out of the city`s two fire stations.
Wheaton has relied on emergency paramedic service from a Glen Ellyn-based company. But the city`s proposed budget for fiscal year 1986-87 now calls for a 12-member team of paramedics and the purchase of a new emergency vehicle and equipment, according to City Manager Don Rose.
Wheaton`s emergency calls presently are handled by Leonard Ambulance Service Ltd., which also serves Glen Ellyn, Winfield and Warrenville. The owner, Fred Leonard, also operates Leonard Memorial Home Ltd. in Glen Ellyn.
”As Wheaton has grown, and the three other communities have grown, it has become more and more difficult for him to serve that area,” Rose said.
”We have seen run times getting longer and longer, and we`ve had a problem with availability. He`s also in the funeral business and sometimes he`s pretty busy.”
Attempts by the Tribune to reach Leonard for comment were unsuccesful Monday.
Rose said a city study two years ago showed an average response time of more than 10 minutes to emergency calls in the city. He said the city-operated service would have an average response time of less than 6 minutes.
Leonard, in an advertisement last week in local newspapers, said the response time of his ambulances was 6 to 7 minutes. In the advertisement, a letter to Wheaton residents signed by Leonard, the company owner said the cost to residents would increase $600,000 under the proposed service.
Under the proposed 1986-87 budget, Wheaton would spend $390,000 each year for the paramedic team and equipment maintenance, and would also spend $59,000 the first year for a new emergency van and other equipment, Rose said.
Rose said switching to the proposed service would ease the burden on city police, who now have 16 officers trained to provide some emergency help.
