Services Provided – FIELD
The MAC should be contacted for any Mass Casualty Incident (MCI) with a minimum of 5 patients. You have the option to open an MCI with less than 5 patients if needed. However, the threshold for MAC contact is 5 patients for an MCI.
When you call the MAC emergency line 562-347-1789, identify your department and unit and state that you are calling with an MCI. Do not give your unit only (ie: Rescue 63) as we have multiple FD’s in the county with a rescue 63. Please try to have Medcom be the only unit contacting MAC, but do not let this delay activation of an MCI
You can contact MAC via VMED 28 for MCI’s if you are unable to call. We prefer the emergency line as to keep VMED 28 open for helicopter traffic. Comms are easier over the phone as well.
When you call in an MCI state: 1) Your department and unit. 2) Your location. 3) Nature of the incident. 4) Estimated number of patients (notify MAC if any immediate patients are already en route or need an immediate destination). 5) If any of your patients are Trauma criteria or pediatric patients, please inform MAC.
MAC will take the information and send out a Reddinet poll to all hospitals surrounding your incident. We will call the closest facilities for an immediate response and provide you with destination options. You decide which patients go to which facility. MAC will only advise you in whether a destination is appropriate based on the type of patient (ie: Trauma to a trauma center, Peds to EDAP) and we will advise against sending too many patients to one facility. Once you have assigned patients to units and units to destinations, please advise MAC of each unit, number and triage category of patient (ie: “RA 1 with 1 delayed and 1 minor”), and which ED they are en route to. The paramedics on that unit must make base contact with the destination or assigned base hospital for that ED, and provide a run report. MAC will track all patient arrivals on the Reddinet, and provide your department with a full report and timeline of events after the incident has closed. MAC is also the point of contact for any HERT team activations in the field. This can be initiated by the medic or captain on scene, or by your dispatch. MAC is also available to drill on these procedures with your department at any time. Just call to request a drill at the time you would like. If it’s a large scale or multi agency drill, please email our program director (email is in the staff contacts) with the information for your request. We can accommodate large scale drills, as well as individual drills for interns or probationary members.
If you are a rescue helicopter, FD or private provider, MAC can alert your destination hospital in LA County of your ETA, and whether assistance is required to offload. For patients going to the ED, MAC can relay your run information as well to the MICN. Contact MAC on VMED 28 when you are en route and provide your department, unit number, destination, and ETA. Include the chief complaint or type of patient, the distress level, and indicate if you need assistance with offloading your patient at the helipad (ie: “County Copter 11 en route to LA General with a 10 minute ETA, stable trauma patient)
For private ambulance paramedics, EMT’s, and Supervisors: MAC can close an ED that you or your units are waiting to offload a patient in due to saturation. Please follow the guidelines and threshold outlined in Reference 503.1 of the LA County EMS Policy and Procedure Manual, and have your supervisor call MAC to request closure once they arrive at the ED.
If you are a Firefighter/Paramedic deployed to a wildfire outside of LA County, contact MAC at the beginning of your deployment to register as a Fireline Medic. This allows you to practice paramedicine under your LA County license and scope of practice while temporarily working outside of the county.
If you are an LA County Lifeguard assigned to Baywatch Avalon, MAC will assist you in activating a dive emergency response with the USC Hyperbaric chamber and Hyperbaric medicine staff. Call the emergency line at 562-347-1789 with your patients age, dive info, complaint, history, distress level, and vital signs. MAC will contact the on call Hyperbaric MD at LA General and connect you for a presentation. If it is determined that your patient needs the Hyperbaric chamber, MAC will send a helicopter to pick up the MD and fly to the Catalina Chamber to treat your patient.
If you are a police officer searching for a missing person who may be in the hospital, MAC can send out a Reddinet message to all facilities with the information you have on your subject. If a facility sees the message and has your patient, they will contact you at the number you provide to MAC. Call 866-940-4401 or fax your Missing Person info sheet to 562-904-4300.
If your police department is searching for a Gunshot victim and you have a description or any info on the person you are looking for, MAC can send out a Reddinet alert to all hospitals with your info. All ED’s are required to notify local police of any patients with gunshot wounds, however MAC can also send out a general message for gunshot wound victims if you do not have specific information on the victim.