A representative from NYU Langone gave a presentation to the public during the Floral Park Board of Trustees meeting Tuesday as the village continues the weigh hiring a third party for additional ambulance services. 

Nicole Hansen, EMS department manager for Langone, gave a presentation that explained Langone’s model to provide the village with additional services. 

If approved, the hospital would station an ambulance in the village with paramedics and would be first due, or the first on the scene whenever there is an emergency. If both the ambulance and fire department are handling a call, then the county’s ambulance service would be dispatched. 

Currently, the fire department, completely made up of volunteers, gets dispatched first for emergencies followed by the county, but staffing issues, triage times at hospitals and stringent training requirements have caused the village’s chiefs association to seek a third party. 

Under the proposal, the county would be third due, behind Langone and the department.

“We are a 100% volunteer department so people have full-time jobs,” said Chief James Dodson. “While volunteering in the village, we are seeing increased call volumes due to personnel issues at hospitals, triage times and additional training requirements.”

Hansen said Langone has over 20 ambulances in service for Brooklyn and Manhattan while Garden City has two ambulances they provide the village. 

Before Tuesday night, both Langone and Northwell gave a presentation to fire department leadership.

One of the differences between the two, Dodson said, was Langonge was stationing an ambulance only for calls in the village while Northwell would have a pool of nearby ambulances that would be sent. 

Many questions centered around the price and cost of the services which Hansen said depends on both someone’s insurance and the details surrounding the emergency. Hansen also clarified that if someone doesn’t have insurance the hospital has a financial assistance program.

On top of the concern for pricing, one resident who was a member of the department said the rescue company has about 12 people and is being stretched too thin to make the calls in the village. 

In Garden City, Hansen said the two ambulances have responded to just over 2,000 in the past calendar year while they couldn’t make 150 of them which was based on multiple calls at once or extended triage times. 

There is no set schedule on when a decision will be made on the ambulance service or if there will be another question and answering session for residents. The earliest the board of trustees can put it on the agenda and approve it would be the next meeting on Tuesday, Jan. 17.