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Montgomery County Hospital District EMS Receives Top Certifications
CONROE, TX – Montgomery County Hospital District EMS has successfully completed the intensive 20-step process to reaccredit as an Accredited Center of Excellence (ACE) with the International Academies of Emergency Dispatch® (IAED™). The center has once again achieved ACE status for its use of the Medical Priority Dispatch System™ (MPDS®). It is the 111th center in the world to attain Medical ACE. This distinction places the center among the very highest-performing emergency dispatch agencies worldwide.
ACE inspires agencies to perform superior, up-to-date public care and to employ efficient use of resources when handling all emergency call situations. An accreditation lasts three years. In order to achieve reaccreditation, agencies must meet or exceed the same standards required in the initial accreditation, which requires participation from everyone in the department. Because ACE agencies abide by these standards and have fulfilled these requirements, callers can have peace of mind knowing their needs will always be appropriately addressed and that they will receive the help they need.
This is the fourth time Montgomery County has been reaccredited for its use of the MPDS. It is also an ACE for its use of the Fire Priority Dispatch System™ (FPDS®), making it one of just 24 agencies in the world to hold dual Medical/Fire accreditations. There are seven other Medical ACEs in Texas and one other Medical/Fire dual ACE agency.
Kimberly Brown, Quality Coordinator at Montgomery County Hospital District EMS, said it’s satisfying to achieve this recognition and that she and the entire staff takes the recognition seriously. She said everyone in the center has bought into the ACE process and what it takes to measure up.
“ACE means that we understand and place value on the high set of standards and have been able to maintain them,” Brown said. “Our center feels that being an ACE means that we offer an extremely high level of service, we are great at what we do, and it is important that we maintain a high level of care. Our people value this recognition. ACE is a distinction that is a badge of honor and is recognized by other agencies. ACE means we are awesome!”
But Brown said ACE is far more than certification. It signifies that every resident who calls will get the highest-quality service and care possible for the most urgent emergencies. She’s grateful on a personal level that the center measures up to such lofty expectations.
“To be an Accredited Center of Excellence, means that we recognize the need to have a high standard and that we meet that standard,” she said. “I work in the county where I was born and raised. I have family here, and knowing that our center is an ACE means that regardless of who answers the phone, my family will get excellent assistance. This is very important to me.”
Just as it does for the initial accreditation, the IAED’s Board of Accreditation reviews the center’s application and documentation of the Twenty Points.
“There’s a tremendous amount of work that goes into reaccrediting as an ACE,” said IAED Chair of Accreditation Christof C. Chwojka. “We’re certainly proud of Montgomery County Hospital District EMS and its dedication to this process. Being a dual-ACE agency is no easy feat.”
Not only does the ACE distinction hold significant value for everyone at the center, but Brown said it also should mean a lot to the residents they help.
“The citizens expect professional help, and this accreditation means they are getting that,” she said. “We take pride in our work and want all who make contact with our center to know that they are being helped by the best in the industry.”
There are currently more than 190 centers throughout the world that have the Medical ACE distinction and more the 30 that have the Fire ACE distinction among the 3,500 centers worldwide using the fire, police, medical, and nurse triage protocols for safe and efficient response to the wide variety of emergency situations.
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