‘Difficult to impossible’

Even if the Lincoln Parish Police Jury signs a contract with a private ambulance service within the next month, it will be “difficult to impossible” for the emergency dispatch system to make the switch by the time the Ruston Fire Department pulls out of the parish Jan. 1.

That’s according to Lincoln Parish Communications District Chairman Bill Sanderson. The communications district deals with the 911 dispatch system.

The jury is under the gun to find a new ambulance provider and a new rescue provider by the time its current contract with the city of Ruston expires on midnight Dec. 31. A committee charged with recommending new providers has only one offer on the table for ambulance service and none for rescue.

Meantime, stakeholders are becoming frustrated with the process.

“I just think everybody needs to put their heads together and take it seriously. It is a very serious matter,” Lincoln Parish Sheriff Stephen William said.

The Ambulance Service Committee is scheduled to resume its deliberations Aug. 5. If a recommendation comes out of that meeting, the jury could act on it at its Aug. 9 meeting.

But only after the jury accepts a recommendation — whenever that happens— can the communications district begin reworking the 911 system, Sanderson said.

The reason: It can’t look at adapting its system until it knows the level of equipment the new provider has.

“It will take a complete study on our part of how to handle (a 911) call,” he said.

Dispatchers will also have to be trained on any new procedures.

Here’s what happens now: If a 911 call is made from out in the parish requesting emergency or rescue, the call automatically — and instantly — routes to an information center and to the dispatcher at the Lincoln Parish Sheriff’s Office. The call information, including location, is displayed on a screen in front of the operator.

The operator remains on the line and hits a transfer button that immediately bring a Ruston Police Department dispatcher on the line.

RPD and LPSO have identical dispatch equipment. RPD then dispatches either an ambulance or rescue to the parish location.

All of that happens within seconds.

Simultaneously, LPSO can dispatch the parish fire department, if it’s needed.

But when Ruston Fire Department is no longer the primary parish responder, the process will change.

“We’ll still be handling it on our end, but we’ve got to make a phone call to the (private provider), Sanderson said.

That could involve a literal telephone call from local dispatchers to the new provider’s dispatcher — without the benefit of both dispatchers being able to see the computer screen showing the call location.

“The big question is how do you hand off a (911) call to somebody else,” Sanderson said.

That may not be an issue with rescue service. The Lincoln Parish Fire Protection District No. 1 has said it’s interested in being the new rescue provider. LPSO already dispatches for the district.

Sanderson said no one from the Ambulance Service Committee and only one juror has asked him about the impact a change in providers will have on the 911 configuration.

Sanderson, who sits on the Ambulance Service Committee by virtue of his being mayor of Choudrant, said he’s disappointed in the policejury’s rejection last week of the committee’s recommendation that the parish contract with Ruston for one more year to give the parish time to more fully explore its options and work out any kinks.

“I personally am very disappointed in the decision made by the police jury. Though I have not talked with other members of the ambulance committee, I feel that the police jury’s poor decision had a bearing on being unable to attain a quorum (at Wednesday’s committee meeting),” he said.

“If the police jury is not going to accept and act positively on the committee’s recommendation, that places a huge question of why we even meet.”

Grambling Police Chief Tommy Clark, who represents Grambling on the committee, said the panel needs to regroup and “press forward and come up with a workable plan that leads to a final contract for services.”

Police Juror Skip Russell thinks that will happen.

“We will have a first class, reputable group in place, whether that’s the city of Ruston or Pafford EMS or anybody else. We don’t know who that’s going to be, but we will have somebody in place, and when our constituents call 911 Jan. 1, there’s going to be someone to respond,” he said.

Caleb Daniel contributed to the content of this report.