Snohomish County Fire District 1 and the Lynnwood Fire Department are teaming up to expand community paramedic service in South Snohomish County that will serve all communities served by Fire District 1 including Edmonds.
The Verdant Health Commission is providing a grant of more than $1 million to fund the regional program for the next three years.
“This partnership with Verdant and the Lynnwood Fire Department will strengthen and expand community paramedic service to reach more of our most vulnerable citizens,” Fire District Chief Ed Widdis said in an announcement Monday.
Lynnwood Fire Chief Scott Cockrum added, “Working together creates efficiencies and opportunities for this program to have a greater impact in the communities we serve.”
Capt. Shaughn Maxwell, head of Fire District 1’s Emergency Medical Services Division, describes the community paramedic program as “a health-care early-warning system.” He explained, “Our emergency responders are in a position to know that someone needs help before anyone else. Many of these patients end up being frequent 911 callers and are referred by firefighters to the community paramedic for follow-up services. Through our community paramedic program, they can connect these patients to the health and social service they need.”
Fire District 1 and Lynnwood Fire Department initiated separate community paramedic programs over the last two years. Verdant supported both efforts with grant funding. “This new grant will bring together the most impactful activities of both programs,” Maxwell said.