The Billerica Police Department has been working hard to meet the state mandate governing Emergency Medical Dispatch (EMD) on July 1, 2012.

What is EMD? Emergency Medical Dispatch is a systematic program of handling medical calls for assistance. Trained telecommunicators, using locally-approved EMD Guidecards, can quickly and properly determine the nature and priority of the call, dispatch the appropriate response and then give the caller instructions to help treat the patient until the responding EMS unit arrives.

All EMD training is being handled within the department by Telecommunicator Matthew Leung and Paramedic Rob O’brien.  Initial EMD training involves an initial comprehensive 32 hour training session and 16 hours of continued education annually to remain certified.  Both Telecommunicator Leung and Paramedic O’Brien have been certified through The Association of Public-Safety Communications Officials (APCO).  APCO is Billerica’s preferred EMD resource.

As part of our move toward the EMD mandate, the department is now in the final steps of affiliating with Lahey Clinic Medical Center in Burlington.  Marc Dimattia is our Lahey EMS coordinator and Dr.Kevin Dunbar is Billerica’s medical Director for EMS and EMD.

Billerica remains one of the few towns in the Commonwealth to retain a full Advanced Life Support EMS service.  Combined with the new EMD initiatives, Billerica Residents will receive the highest level of EMS service available.