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PAFFORD EMS
Ortivus is honored to spotlight Pafford EMS, one of the first
pioneers of the original Sweetsoft Software (now Sweet-Billing and
Sweet-Field Data) – Customer Number AR001…
James and Carol Pafford formed Pafford Ambulance Service, Inc. in
1967. Since then, Pafford has continued to provide pre-hospital
emergency and non-emergency transportation to many residents of
Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Oklahoma. Today, Pafford EMS
has four divisions and is one of the largest and oldest family-owned
ambulance services in our region.
The tradition of compassionate quality service continues with the
second generation of Pafford’s. Jamie, Greg and John, each having
their specialty in the business, maintain the Pafford reputation by
working together on a daily basis.
Pafford EMS is over 250 employees strong, with assets which include:
35 Advanced Support Life Support Ambulances, one fixed-wing
aircraft, one helicopter, and 23 stations spread over our service
area of six counties and five parishes. Transporting over 30,000
patients per year, Pafford EMS is dedicated to providing the best
pre-hospital care to the citizens of our communities.
On the dispatch side, Pafford EMS staffs certified medical
dispatchers 24-hours-a-day, who can provide step-by-step
instructions for CPR and emergency childbirth, as well as assist
choking and bleeding victims. Through the GPS systems in most of the
Pafford EMS units, the immediate location of Advanced Life Support
units en route can also be determined. Pafford EMS also offers “ON
CALL” buttons for security for loved ones living alone.
Pafford EMS has expanded into providing EMS billing for many other
ambulance services, processing over 5,000 calls each month.
“After many, many years of billing, we have been able to view the
good, bad and ugly and use that to our advantage,” says Jamie
Pafford-Gresham, Vice President of Pafford Ambulance Service, Inc.
“With Sweet-Billing and the proper use of Schedules and Events,
we are able to customize our billing process precisely as we need
it, enabling our staff to make the most of their time. Now with the
addition of Sweet-Field Data, we are able to streamline our process
from the beginning. (The billing staff loves the E-PCR's - no more
squinting of the eyes to figure out the medics handwriting!) With
the volume and distance of the service areas, the electronic patient
care collection has been a much-needed application to help cut down
on the paperwork shuffle.”
When asked what advice she would offer other EMS services, Jamie
offers the following wise advice: “For new services, I would
emphasize the importance of proper billing procedures and also
encourage utilizing a reputable billing company; we have rescued a few
companies from
bankruptcy. Also, I believe that services should be involved with
their state and national ambulance organizations to keep current
with the latest developments and to be able to lobby positions that
benefit our ambulance services at the local and national level. It
is everyone’s job to work for changes and improvements in EMS.”
[Jamie is a 12-year board member of the American Ambulance
Association.]
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