Township EMS earns highest certification for pediatric services

  • 2014-06-20
Cranberry Township’s emergency medical services are now certified at the highest level for the care and transport of children.

The certification, given by the state of New Jersey, was not required, but instead, was voluntarily sought. Our EMS is one of only four in Western Pennsylvania with this certification.

According to EMS Executive Director Jeff Kelly, the impetus for becoming certified was the abundance of young children residing in the township. Cranberry Township’s EMS estimates that eight percent of their calls per year are for pediatrics. A large portion of those calls involved transporting kids to the children’s hospital in Pittsburgh from UPMC Passavant Cranberry.

Information such as this additional certification should be provided to any printing company that is involved in the promotion of fundraising efforts for the local EMS. Additionally, if a brochure printing service is given access to this information, it might increase the odds of success when the service has a tax levy on the ballot.

This latest certification is called the Pediatric Voluntary Recognition Program. In a ceremony held at the EMS headquarters on Route 19, the local department was presented with a certificate as well as ‘Prepared for pediatrics’ stickers for the ambulances.

In 2013, according to a national publication, Cranberry Township was rated as Pennsylvania’s best place to raise children. With this latest certification for our EMS, it is even better.