Effective Oct. 1, Dr. Skipper Bertrand, M.D., of BEST EMS of Dallas, will provide physician medical direction for the City of Paris Emergency Medical Service.
The new partnership will allow Paris EMS to provide additional patient care methods and access to a network of more than 20 other EMS providers served by BEST EMS.
The change of medical direction doesn’t affect the ownership or staffing of Paris EMS. Physician medical directors guide how patients are cared for in pre-hospital settings, suggest and provide staff training, and observe and review actual calls for service. Daily operations and management of Paris EMS will remain under the Paris Fire Chief and the EMS Assistant Chief.
“I’m excited for our service to connect with BEST EMS,” Paris EMS Assistant Chief Jason Dyess said. “Having Dr. Bertrand as medical director will allow us to continue superior patient care and expand the procedures and tools we use to treat our patients in the field.”
EMS medical directors are physicians who guide EMS providers based on pre-established Standard Operating Procedures. Emergency Medical Technicians and Paramedics provide medical care within the limits of the SOPs, which typically include instructions for providing advanced medical care, like pre-hospital drug administration, when time is of the essence.
Dr. Bertrand will be in-house with Paris EMS at least eight hours each month, riding on calls, teaching, and reviewing calls for service. “I look forward to working hand-in-hand with Paris EMS and building a relationship that is beneficial to their staff and, more importantly, the people they serve,” Bertrand said.
Licensed physicians who serve as medical directors must have specific knowledge of EMS systems and pre-hospital care and meet other requirements for registration by the Texas Medical Board. Medical directors provide oversight of EMS providers, develop protocols, supervise training, and conduct performance audits.
BEST EMS has five physicians who provide medical direction for EMS providers in Texas, including DFW Airport Public Safety, cities of McKinney, Denton, Trophy Club, Euless, Grapevine, and several other city and county-based EMS services.
“BEST EMS has a stellar reputation for partnering with EMS agencies to provide innovative pre-hospital care driven by research and experience,” Dyess explained. “We’ll also be able to call on other Texas EMS providers in their network to collaborate on developing policies, procedures, ongoing training, and more.”
Dr. Bertrand attended the University of Southwestern Louisiana and then obtained his medical degree from Louisiana State University Health Science Center in Shreveport. His residency in Emergency Medicine was completed at the University of Arkansas for the Medical Sciences. He spent the next 16 years working at the flagship hospital for Baptist Health in Little Rock, Arkansas. He served as Vice-Chair of the emergency department and Assistant Medical Director for the first helicopter program in Arkansas to respond to Trauma scenes and patients. He joined BEST EMS in 2020.
BEST EMS was founded in 2012 by a group of Board-Certified emergency medicine physicians with a passion for EMS and a vision of a pre-hospital care system that combines quality, education, and service. Founded in response to a desire to collaborate with our EMS partners, BEST EMS strives for excellence in patient care, seamless care transitions from emergency dispatch to hospital discharge by facilitating a culture of continuous quality improvement.
Paris EMS employs 27 full-time paramedics and more than a dozen part-time EMTs and Paramedics. Paris EMS staffs four MICU Ambulances 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and offers inter-facility transfers with up to three ambulances available for long-distance transfers at any time. Paris EMS provides service to all of Lamar County, covering more than 900 square miles.
