TUESDAY, April 28, 2026 |
Photo – SCWEMS Ambulance barn – Bigfoot99 file photo
SCWEMS representatives explained why the service isn’t always able to do patient transfers from the Platte Valley to other hospitals.
As reported by Bigfoot99, some have raised concerns about delays involving the South-Central Wyoming Emergency Medical Service. Speaking at the February 4th Saratoga Town Council meeting, Dan McGuire said he experienced a medical emergency and, instead of being taken to Banner Wyoming Medical Center in Casper by ambulance, had to wait more than two hours for a rescue helicopter.
Saratoga’s SCWEMS representative, Steve Martin, attributed the delays to a shortage of volunteer ambulance drivers, noting the difficulty of motivating people with full‑time jobs to sacrifice their time to respond to calls.
During the April 20th SCWEMS Joint Powers Board meeting in Hanna, members continued to discuss the shortage of volunteers. Riverside Mayor Leroy Stephenson asked which hospital SCWEMS uses when responding to a call in the Platte Valley.
SCWEMS Deputy Director Shana Romero said the service is legally required to take patients to the nearest hospital, in this case the North Platte Valley Medical Center, unless the patient needs care that is not available at that location.
Romero added that patients from outside the Platte Valley will be taken to Memorial Hospital of Carbon County, Ivinson Memorial Hospital in Laramie, or Banner Wyoming Medical Center in Casper, depending on which facility is closest.
Mayor Stephenson, who also serves on the North Platte Valley Medical Center Board of Directors, asked why SCWEMS was declining to transport patients from the Saratoga hospital to other medical facilities. Deputy Director Romero said the service is primarily responsible for handling emergency 911 calls. Romero noted that SCWEMS cannot take patients who require Advanced Life Support, or ALS, without a qualified medical provider in the vehicle, which the service currently lacks.
Romero said SCWEMS has one Advanced Life Support‑certified member and three who are preparing to obtain their certification by the end of May.
Mayor Stephenson asked if every call the ambulance service declined from the North Platte Valley Medical Center required an ALS‑certified provider on board. Romero said some calls only required Basic Life Support, or BLS, training. The deputy director added that SCWEMS prioritizes covering the county over transferring patients between hospitals.
Mayor Stephenson said that since the start of April, he was aware of six transport calls from the Saratoga hospital. Four were declined, one was transported, and one received no response from SCWEMS. Deputy Director Romero said she was unaware of SCWEMS failing to respond to a call for service. The denials required medical care the ambulance service was unable to provide.
SCWEMS Joint Powers Board Chairman Morgan Irene, who is also the mayor of Elk Mountain, said participating municipalities, including Riverside, provide funding for 911 coverage. Irene said if ambulances are unable to respond to 911 calls because they are transferring patients between hospitals, towns will withdraw their support.
Mayor Stephenson countered that patients of North Platte Valley Medical Center, particularly those in the extended care unit, have already been paid into SCWEMS by the municipalities where they reside. He acknowledged that not every transport call involves an extended care patient. However, the Riverside mayor said he was told that when an emergency transport call is denied, patients are being instructed to check themselves out of the Saratoga hospital and call 911 to be taken to another facility.
Mayor Stephenson said at least one instance was witnessed by Saratoga Police Chief John Moore and a Carbon County Sheriff’s Office deputy.
Board members said that would not make sense because the ambulance service would take the patient back to North Platte Valley Medical Center, which is the closest hospital.
The SCWEMS Joint Powers Board took no action following Mayor Stephenson’s remarks and moved on to the next agenda item.
