Emergency Medical Services

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The City of Carlsbad Fire Department does much more than extinguish fires, responding to every type of emergency, from traffic collisions, to medical emergencies, and severe traumas. The department is proud to provide an outstanding level of emergency medical care with a prompt and timely response.

The fire department has a firefighter/paramedic on every apparatus to ensure patients receive an advanced level of care as quickly as possible. As more than three-quarters of the fire suppression personnel are licensed paramedics, at any emergency incident, multiple paramedics will be present to provide the most appropriate care.

In addition to providing emergency medical care, one of the Carlsbad Fire Department's emergency medical services goals are to educate the community. Please continue reading below and read through the pages to the left to learn valuable information.

PulsePoint phone

The revolutionary PulsePoint mobile phone app is now available to all of San Diego County. PulsePoint is a non-profit foundation, whose mission is to make it easier for citizens who are trained in CPR to use their life-saving skills. The free app uses location-based technology to alert CPR-trained citizens if someone in their immediate area is experiencing sudden cardiac arrest.

The app has been integrated with the 911 Dispatch System so upon receiving a call for a suspected sudden cardiac arrest, the dispatch center will activate an alert to the mobile app, while simultaneously dispatching emergency service crews. Along with the notification, the app also directs these citizen rescuers to the exact location of the closes publicly accessible Automated External Defibrillator (AED). While the app is available to all CPR-trained individuals, the real target audience is off-duty firefighters, nurses and other life-saving professionals.

The PulsePoint app is available for iPhone and Android users and can be downloaded from the iTunes Store and Google Play.

Heart attacks

In the event of a heart attack or suspected heart attack, do not take any chances with life, call 9-1-1 immediately. The fire department has professionals trained to evaluate conditions and transport heart attack patients to the hospital, if necessary. Not all these signs occur in every attack. Sometimes they go away and return. If even some occur, get help fast and call 9-1-1.

Warning signs

Uncomfortable pressure, fullness, squeezing or pain in the center of the chest that lasts more than a few minutes, or goes away and comes back.
Pain spreads and radiates from the chest into the shoulders, arms or neck.
Discomfort in the chest and lightheadedness, fainting, sweating, nausea or shortness of breath.
Atypical chest pain, stomach or abdominal pain, nausea, or dizziness.
Shortness of breath and difficulty breathing.
Unexplained anxiety, weakness or fatigue.
Palpitation, cold sweat or paleness.

CPR

Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) is an artificial method of circulating blood and oxygen through a body and attempting to keep the brain alive. Learn CPR basics in two easy steps, and watch for upcoming "Sidewalk CPR" events in the city.

CPR is effective, and, when initiated within four minutes, the survival rate improves markedly. When initiated within four to eight minutes, the survival rate is 10 percent. CPR is most often used in instances of drowning and heart attacks. There are several reasons why it is important to learn CPR. Most CPR events occur in the home, therefore knowing CPR techniques can help save a family member or close friend.

Currently, the City of Carlsbad Fire Department does not offer classes for CPR certification. If interested in CPR certification, please click on the following link for the American Heart Association.

Actions for survival

Recognize signals
Stop activity, rest, lay down
Recognize that patient's having early signs often deny having a heart attack
On heart attack victims, be prepared to perform CPR, inquire about an AED and call 9-1-1

Carbon Monoxide safety

The Consumer Product Safety Commission recommends installing at least one carbon monoxide (CO) detector with an audible alarm near each bedroom. If a home has more than one story, at least one detector should be placed on each story. Be sure the detector has a testing laboratory label. The most common sources of carbon monoxide are fumes from automobiles or appliances (furnaces, space heaters, clothes dryers, ovens, water heaters, charcoal grills, and fireplaces).

Carbon monoxide is an odorless, deadly gas that can kill before it is detected. At low levels of exposure, it can cause serious health problems. Infants, children, senior citizens, and those with heart or lung problems may be especially vulnerable to CO poisoning. When CO is inhaled, it accumulates in the blood and forms a toxic compound, known as carboxyhemoglobin. Hemoglobin carries oxygen in the bloodstream to cells and tissue. Once CO attaches itself to hemoglobin it displaces the oxygen that the body organs need.

Precautions

The presence of carbon monoxide cannot be sensed. Check all other appliances in the home that use flammable fuels such as natural gas, oil, propane, wood or kerosene.

Check pilot lights - the by-products of combustion are released inside the home rather than vented outside.
Be sure space heaters are vented properly. Unvented space heaters that use a flammable fuel such as kerosene can release carbon monoxide into the home.
Barbecue grills should never be operated indoors under any circumstances nor should stove tops or ovens that operate on flammable fuels be used to heat a residence.
Check fireplaces for closed, blocked or bent flues, soot and debris.
Check the clothes dryer vent opening outside the house for lint.

Bike medics

When you are out and about in the downtown area or near the beach, look for the fire department in their red shirts and on bicycles. Established in summer of 2014, a bicycle medic team consists of two medics with first-line emergency drugs and equipment. This team does not replace any of the usual emergency response but rather is an adjunct with the ability to get through the crowds quickly and render aid. The downtown and beach areas are typically a very busy area for medical aids, especially during special events.