Manatee County paramedicine chief wins state award

The Florida Department of Health has recognized Manatee County Community Paramedicine Chief James Crutchfield with the state's EMS Injury Prevention Award.

Crutchfield helped launch the county's Community Paramedicine Team program in 2016 to create a continuum of care between the patient, the physician and other resources in the community. The team uses evidence-based fall prevention and balance programs to reduce a patient's risk of falling.

Since the program's launch, Community Paramedics have diverted nearly 600 calls for ambulances and more than 450 trips to the hospital. That represents a savings of about $809,000 in health care costs.

"We're very proud of the work Chief Crutchfield and the Community Paramedicine team have put into this initiative and to receive state-level recognition for such an innovative program is a great honor," Manatee County Public Safety Director Bob Smith said in a press release.

The award will be presented July 11 during the 28th annual Excellence in EMS Awards in Orlando.