Andrews EMS

On March 18, 1970, Andrews City/County EMS, then operated by the Andrews Police Department (APD), responded to its first medical call. In those early days, EMS ran out of a patrol car retrofitted for transport and an Econoline van, completing 129 transports in its first year. By the mid-1990s, the police department hired its first EMS-only employees to keep up with a growing call volume. In 2015, EMS officially became its own full-time department, working separately from, but still closely with, APD. This change recognized what had long been true: policing and EMS require very different training and mindsets. For years, EMS staffing met the minimum requirements under Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) rules. But recruiting has become harder, especially as APD shifted to hiring police officers without the requirement of EMT certification. While that helped the police fill positions, it left EMS struggling to keep pace with demand. Today, Andrews EMS is licensed to operate four ambulances. Staffing allows for two units to be covered by on-duty EMS crews, a third by administrative staff or APD officers, and a fourth only through callouts to off-duty personnel. On paper, that’s four ambulances. In practice, the system barely covers two. This is especially challenging during critical emergencies. State rules only require two people per ambulance, one to drive and one to provide patient care-but the sickest or most severely injured patients often need three or four providers in the back, plus a driver. With only four personnel on duty at a time, responding to one critical patient can leave the rest of the community with little to no coverage. Andrews EMS has always aimed to deliver high-quality, progressive prehospital care, but growth has stretched the system thin.

Andrews EMS Challenges

  • While APD assists, when possible, it is no longer practical for them to staff ambulances and still provide effective policing for the community.
  • Call volumes continue to rise. At times, only one paramedic and one EMT are available to cover all 1,500 square miles of Andrews County when other units are already tied up.
  • The Texas Commission on Fire Protection (TCFP) requires all certified firefighters to hold at least an Emergency Medical Responder (EMR) license. With 24-hour staffing, these firefighters could also help ensure ambulances are adequately covered each day.
  • Combining fire and EMS under a single medical license reduces duplication. It eliminates the need for a separate fire department license, medical director, protocols, and supply chain.
  • This combined model is the most common form of 911 service across the U.S. Since fire and EMS often respond to the same emergencies, integrating them allows firefighters to provide additional support when needed.
  • A response model with four firefighters and four EMS personnel on duty spreads resources more evenly and ensures better coverage for the community.