DANE COUNTY, Wis. – In response to an increase in calls and response times, both Middleton EMS and Waunakee Area EMS (WAEMS) in northern Dane County are considering adding a new station and ambulance in neighboring regions. A recent study by the Wisconsin Policy Forum looked at different approaches the two EMS departments could take.
Proposed approaches range from both EMS departments building separate stations, sharing a station or ambulance, or consolidating into a unified service.
Dane County is the state’s fastest growing county by population, and is projected to continue increasing an additional 39% between 2020 and 2050. The two EMS service areas have seen similar population growth to the rest of the county, with the population within Middleton EMS’s service area increasing by 23% and WAEMS’s increasing by 15.6% from 2014 to 2023.
The Wisconsin Policy Forum explained this population growth, in addition to other factors such as aging populations and the COVID-19 pandemic, led to a larger amount of emergency calls in both EMS service areas. In the last five years, Middleton EMS’s calls have increased by 69% and WAEMS’s have increased by 44%.
Both EMS departments have also seen slightly increased response times. In Middleton EMS’s service area, 18.6% of calls take more than 10 minutes to respond to, compared to 16% of calls in 2022. In WAEMS’s service area, 30.3% of calls take more than 10 minutes to respond to, up from 27% of calls in 2022. In the town of Westport, which accounts for 20% of WAEMS’s calls, 74.1% of calls have more than a 10 minute response time, according to the Wisconsin Policy Forum.
Currently, Middletown EMS and WAEMS both operate two full-time ambulances out of a central station in each EMS service area. This has prompted both EMS departments to consider adding a second station near their shared border. Together, this would cost the two EMS departments an additional $2.5 million a year to operate, according to Wisconsin Policy Forum estimates.
The Wisconsin Policy Forum also looked at other solutions, such as the two EMS departments sharing a station and each operating a third ambulance from it, saving the two departments nearly $400,000 a year combined, compared to the initial plan, or sharing a station as well as an ambulance, which would save close to $650,000 a year.
The Wisconsin Policy Forum also considered the possibility of the two services consolidating, which it believes would further decrease costs by increasing efficiency.
Both EMS departments have already made changes in recent years to respond to an increased demand in their service areas. Middletown EMS added a 15th paramedic in 2022. WAEMS currently employs 12 full-time paramedics, after adding five in 2023. It plans to add an additional two paramedics over the next two years.
Ready the full Wisconsin Policy Forum study, here.
