Western Berks Ambulance Achieves Gold Standard

June 02--If you need Western Berks Ambulance Association for emergency or nonemergency medical services, you don't need to ask for the gold standard for assurance of getting top-flight care.

The gold star decal displayed on all Western Berks vehicles means it has achieved excellence across a broad array of standards, according to the group that conducts ambulance service inspections for the state Department of Health.

Western Berks has been recognized by the Eastern Pennsylvania EMS Council as having achieved its Gold Standard of Excellence for going above and beyond what is required by the Health Department's Bureau of Emergency Medical Services licensure program, said Bonnie S. Page, administrative director of Western Berks Ambulance Association.

Western Berks is the first ambulance corps in Berks to be presented with the honor, she said.

To attain the status, the nonprofit community-based EMS provider headquartered in West Lawn had to meet specific standards in areas including clinical practices, community outreach, operations, safety, education, recruitment and retention, administration and emergency preparedness, she said.

"We will proudly be displaying the Gold Standard of Excellence decal on all of our ambulances," Page said. "It shows our high level of commitment to exemplary performance and customer service."

Western Berks Ambulance was founded in 1961 and has a staff of 85 full- and part-time employees and 10 active volunteers. It responds to more than 16,000 emergency and nonemergency calls every year in a response area covering 120 square miles in western Berks. Nonemergency calls include transporting bedridden patients from a rehabilitation facility to a hospital for nonemergency treatment.

Contact Steven Henshaw: 610-371-5028 or shenshaw@readingeagle.com.

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