EPAB Online

Welcome to the EPAB Website

The Emergency Physicians Advisory Board (EPAB) provides medical oversight for the MedStar System. The MedStar System consists of MedStar EMS, the Ambulance Service which is operated by the Area Metropolitan Ambulance Authority, and 15 area fire departments which serve as First Response Agencies.

The MedStar System was established in 1986 to provice exclusive emergency and non-emergency EMS response to various cities in Tarrant County, Texas. Today, the cities in the MedStar System include Blue Mound, Burleson, Edgecliff Village, Forest Hill, Fort Worth, Haltom City, Haslet, Lakeside, Lake Worth, River Oaks, Saginaw, Sansom Park, Westover HIlls, Westworth Village, and White Settlement.

MedStar covers a service area of 421 square miles, provides service to more than 860,000 residents and responds to about 100,000 calls a year.

CAAS Accreditation

CAAS

Congratulations to MedStar EMS, the exclusive ambulance service provider to 15 Tarrant County cities, for joining the elite group of medical transportation service providers that are accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Ambulance Services (CAAS).

Of the 2,500 licensed ambulance providers in North America, only 133 are CAAS accredited. With this achievement, MedStar becomes only the fourth ambulance service to be accredited in the state of Texas.

Non-Emergent Cardiac Arrest Transports

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Effective April 16, 2010 MedStar will have a major change to the manner in which they transport cardiac arrest patients. This change is being made in order to provide more effective chest compressions, help improve crew safety, and prevent ambulance and "wake effect" collisions. All patients being transported with CPR in progress will now be transported in a non-emergency (COLD) mode.

There were many considerations that went into evaluating this decision and changing this policy. This evaluation process included multiple clinical, safety and time considerations.

To learn more about this EPAB Medical Directive and the rationale behind the decision please refer to the "Priority 3 Transports for Cardiac Arrest Victims" Medical Directive. You may also contact us at 817-923-1500 for further information.

System Information

Visit the System Information section of our site to find the latest information on what is going on in the EPAB / MedStar System. We will keep this area of our site updated with current system happening and other interesting information that is relevant to our providers.

Standby Permitting

Per current City of Fort Worth Ordinance and EPAB Policy all EMS Agencies providing medical standby coverage at public events must have an EPAB Permit. To find out more information regarding this Ordinance or about obtaining a permity please read our Standby Permitting Policy page. You can also call us here in the office for further information.

Recent Protocols

Protocol Testing

All providers in the system must complete their EPAB Protocol Testing on a bi-annual basis or anytime you change certification levels. To access the EPAB protocol tests please go to http://protocol.epabce.org. If you need assistance in setting up or taking your exam please contact us here in EPAB at any time.

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