Emergency Medical Services (EMS)

Hoover Fire Department was one of the first fire departments in 1973 to begin providing EMS in the Jefferson and Shelby County area. Today, EMS has grown to be a much more in depth specialty within the fire department. All of our personnel are EMTs with most being certified at the paramedic level. All of our front line response vehicles are staffed with paramedics and have full advanced life support equipment. This includes all fire engines, ladder trucks and rescue units. Four advanced life support rescue units provide not only advanced medical care, but are also transport capable to provide immediate transport to hospitals without delay. We also have agreements with surrounding fire departments to provide assistance if needed. EMS accounts for the majority of calls for service by the Hoover Fire Department. In 2018 the department responded to 7,315 emergency medical and trauma calls which represent 66 % of our total call volume.

All paramedics and EMTs in the Hoover Fire Department are trained to the highest level and train continuously to keep their skills sharp and ready to be used at all times. Heart attack, stroke and trauma care is coordinated through regional systems to ensure that patients receive prompt care and are directed to the appropriate facility to handle the situation. Hoover Fire Department EMS personnel have received many compliments and awards for their life saving actions.

The Hoover Fire Department along with some other area departments have in the past joined the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) Alabama Resuscitation Center to perform field studies on cardiac and trauma patients in the field. This was a unique study to determine how field care directly affects the patients’ outcome after arrival at the hospital. Eleven other sites in the United States and Canada were part of this study and results of studies have been published and treatment protocols (including the new CPR standards) have been changed showing life-saving improvements in care. The UAB Department of Emergency Medicine also provides physician medical direction as required by state law. This provides us with unlimited training opportunities.