Cataldo Ambulance Service

Cataldo Ambulance Service, Inc.

Type	Private
Industry	Private Ambulance Service
Founded	Somerville, Massachusetts, 1977
Headquarters	Malden, Massachusetts, U.S.
Number of locations	12, 9-1-1 EMS Contracted Municipalities 14 Base Locations
Area served	Greater Boston, Massachusetts
Services	Emergency and Non-Emergency Medical Services
Owner(s)	Robert Cataldo Diana Cataldo Dennis Cataldo
Employees	600
Divisions	Somerville Division, Boston Division, Atlantic Division
Website	www.cataldoambulance.com

Cataldo Ambulance Service and Atlantic Ambulance Service (a division of Cataldo Ambulance Service) provide dedicated ambulance (EMS) services to twelve communities throughout the Greater Boston and North Shore areas in the U.S. Commonwealth of Massachusetts. They serve the following communities: Chelsea, Everett, Lynn, Malden, Marblehead, Melrose, Newton, Peabody, Revere, Salem, Saugus, and Somerville. With base locations throughout all of their 911 communities, Cataldo and Atlantic Ambulance have a wide service area dedicating emergency services, primary backup services, as well as medical transportation to a number of nursing homes, hospitals and other medical facilities throughout the Greater Boston and North Shore areas.

Contents 1 Company Divisions 1.1 Somerville Division 1.2 Boston Division 1.3 Atlantic Division 2 Company history 3 Communications 4 Community Service and Accolades 5 Operations 5.1 Somerville Division 5.2 Boston Division 5.3 Atlantic Ambulance Division 5.4 Field Supervisors 6 References 7 External links

Company Divisions

Cataldo Ambulance operates with three divisions, each with their respective dispatch/operations centers.

Somerville Division

The Somerville division, the company's original region, handles emergency and non-emergency services to multiple cities in the northern Metro Boston area. The company's main administrative departments operate out of the Somerville division - including human resources, public relations, training/clinical education, communications, etc... The Somerville division's operations center was originally located in Somerville, hence the name, but has recently moved to Malden. See Company History. The division is referred to as the "Somerville division" however the operations center is called "Malden Operations."

Boston Division

Cataldo's Boston division operates out of a base in Roslindale, which houses an average of 20 ambulances, 9 chair car vans, the Director of Operations (his vehicle and office), a clinical field supervisor, crew quarters, and a dedicated dispatch center for this division. The Boston division handles 911 emergencies for the City of Newton, as well as many contracts in Boston and surrounding areas. Their most notable contracts are with: Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC), the Hebrew Rehabilitation Center, Children's Hospital Boston (CHB) and Partners HealthCare. The BIDMC, in 2007, sponsored two personalized ambulances, via donations, to Cataldo Ambulance for the sole use of interfacility transport.^[1] The Boston division also handles backup (along with other private companies) to Boston EMS for 911 response to the City of Boston . Additionally, on March 1, 2009 in partnership with Fallon Ambulance, Cataldo's Boston Division began servicing the Partners HealthCare contract.^[2] "Partners" dedicated and non-dedicated units will periodically be asked to sign onto and off of the "Partners 2" radio channel: a far-reaching simplex frequency owned by Fallon Ambulance to be used by the units handling transports to/from Partners Healthcare facilities (a shared contract).

Atlantic Division

In 2003, Atlantic Ambulance purchased North Shore Ambulance company. Atlantic then had the rights to all of Northshores' contracts. Atlantic uses a white yellow and blue logo and color-scheme on their ambulances. They have their own dispatch and field operations management, however administratively they fall under Cataldo Ambulance. They are referred to as Atlantic Ambulance Service, a division of Cataldo Ambulance. This Division services Lynn, Salem, Marblehead, Saugus, and Peabody

Company history

Cataldo was founded in 1977.

Starting July 1, 2008, Cataldo Ambulance acquired the 911 contract for the City of Melrose. This acquisition came after Melrose ended a 10-year contract with another private ambulance service, Action Ambulance. The contract between Cataldo Ambulance and the City of Melrose was signed for three years. Melrose Mayor Rob Dolan said, "Cataldo Ambulance is one of the largest ambulance service providers in the area...The proposal offered the best combination of direct services to the citizens of Melrose and financial benefits to the City of Melrose, as well as countless training opportunities for our public safety employees. The entire package of services offered was superior.”^[3] After a formal bid process in September 2010, the City of Melrose signed a three-year agreement with Cataldo Ambulance Service as the City's continued dedicated emergency medical services provider. "Cataldo not only has a strong presence in the city but their emergency response time far exceeds that of the national average. The equipment that is standard to their operations is above what is considered normal standards of care," stated Melrose Mayor Robert Dolan in a press release.

Cataldo's Atlantic Ambulance division also acquired an additional 911 contract in July 2008. The City of Peabody ended a near decade-long contract with Northshore Ambulance by awarding Atlantic Ambulance, a division of Cataldo Ambulance, with the city's EMS coverage.^[4] Several months thereafter on December 15, 2008, Atlantic Ambulance, a division of Cataldo Ambulance, officially purchased Northshore Ambulance company, thus acquiring the 911 contracts to the City of Salem, and the Town of Marblehead.^[5] Officially, Atlantic's coverage of the Town of Marblehead began on November 21, 2008, and on December 1, 2008, begain providing EMS services to the City of Salem.^[6]

In September 2009, Cataldo Ambulance Service officially moved its main operations center from Somerville to Malden into a new state-of-the-art, combined operations and training center. The previous training center was located in Chelsea. The Somerville base is still utilized for administration and ambulance services.^[7][8]

Beginning at the start of 2010, Cataldo Ambulance became the 911 EMS provider for the City of Newton. The Newton EMS operations are part of the Boston Division of Cataldo Ambulance. Former Newton Mayor David Cohen made this announcement several months prior to 2010, ending Newton's contract with American Medical Response (AMR).^[9]

Communications

Cataldo and Atlantic's new VHF system went into effect around the beginning of December 2006. Communication protocols vary with each of Cataldo's contracted municipalities, however most of them rely on direct radio communication between the covering 911 unit and each area's "Fire Alarm" dispatcher. Every ambulance in the fleet has the capability of communicating with all three of Cataldo's dispatch centers (one for each division), including tactical operations channels, fire department dispatch centers for their entire coverage area, Fallon Ambulance channels for Partners HealthCare communications, and C-Med (ambulance-to-hospital) communications for all of the Massachusetts EMS regions.

Community Service and Accolades

Cataldo Ambulance has a long reputation of making charitable donations to the communities that it serves. Be it in the form of tangible gifts or life-saving education, the goal is to ensure the highest quality of medical care and knowledge to all of the residents of their communities. Furthermore, Cataldo Ambulance regularly hosts and participates in fundraising events that benefit non-profit research organizations like the American Cancer Society.

• 1993, annually. Cataldo Ambulance's Swing Fore Hope annual golf tournament to make contributions to the fight against cancer. All proceeds are donated to the American Cancer Societ's Hope Lodge Boston.^[10]
• December, 2001, annually. Cataldo Ambulance partners with the Somerville Housing Authority to collect toys for needy children for the winter holiday season. Cataldo participates annually by stationing an ambulance at the local K-Mart to collect the goods.^[11]
• March, 2005. Twenty-four Everett school teachers received free CPR/AED training compliments of Cataldo Ambulance after Winter Hill Bank donated two AEDs to Everett Schools.^[12]
• November, 2005. Cataldo Ambulance honored 12 EMTs and Paramedics who spent a total of four weeks, deployed in two teams each for two weeks, in disaster areas post-Hurricane Rita in Texas.^[13]
• February, 2007, annually. Cataldo aids the American Cancer Society's Daffodil Days campaign. This too has become a routine event in which Cataldo Ambulance and its employees participate.^[14]
• May, 2007. Cataldo sponsors mock "mash-up" in collaboration with many Malden officials and the Members of Students Against Destructive Decisions. This has become a routine annual event in several of Cataldo's communities in order to show high-school students the dangers of drunk driving - especially for seniors nearing the prom.^[15]
• September, 2007. Cataldo Ambulance partners with Malden Fire and Police Departments in order to equip new command vehicles with OEMS-approved first-in EMS bags. They were recognized by the Malden Kiwanis Club.^[16]
• February, 2008. Cataldo Ambulance Service donates four defibrillators to Saugus Fire Department
• April, 2008. Cataldo Ambulance Field Supervisor recognized by Everett Chamber as "Paramedic of the Year." Paramedic Supervisor O'Connell was recognized for his significant role as the first EMS responder on scene of a tanker rollover disaster that occurred in Everett in December 2007.^[17][18]
• September, 2008. Atlantic Ambulance donates an AED to St. Mary's High School's (Lynn, MA) Athletic Department.^[19]
• November, 2008. Cataldo Ambulance Service donates former field-supervisor vehicle SUV to City of Melrose Fire Department.^[20]
• December, 2008. Cataldo Ambulance Only Private Service In State Equipping Vehicles With Priority Traffic Control System (3M Opticom e.g. see Traffic signal preemption).^[21]
• February, 2009. Atlantic Ambulance Service donates four AEDs over four years to City of Peabody and to St. John's Baptist School.^[22]
• October, 2009. Cataldo donates a used ambulance to the City of Somerville for conversion into a PD Incident Command Vehicle.^[23]
• December, 2009. Cataldo Ambulance Service's Vice President, Dennis Cataldo, receives the "Region IV EMS Leader Award" from the Metropolitan Boston Emergency Medical Services Council (MBEMSC).^[24]
• January, 2010. Atlantic Ambulance staffs a Peabody clinic providing H1N1 vaccines.^[25]
• May, 2010. Cataldo Ambulance Golf Tournament Raises $28,000 for American Cancer Society.^[26]

Operations

Somerville Division

The Somerville Division services the cities and towns of, Chelsea, Everett, Malden, Melrose, Revere, Somerville, and Saugus with dedicated 911 ALS units 24 hours-a-day. Each municipality has a dedicated Cataldo EMS ALS unit and backup coverage is provided by additional non-dedicated ALS and BLS units positioned at bases throughout the coverage area. The primary 911 trucks are as follows:

Unit #	City
Paramedic 1	Chelsea, City of
Paramedic 2	Everett, City of
Paramedic 3	Malden, City of
Paramedic 4	Melrose, City of
Paramedic 5	Revere, City of
Paramedic 6	Somerville, City of
Paramedic 8	Saugus, Town of

*Paramedic 8 operates under the Atlantic Ambulance operations center

Boston Division

Dedicated Cataldo EMS (Boston Division) units for the City of Newton, additional ALS/BLS used as backup when needed (as of 12/28/09)

Unit #	City
Medic 1	Newton, City of
Medic 2	Newton, City of
Ambulance 1	Newton, City of
Ambulance 2	Newton, City of

Atlantic Ambulance Division

Dedicated Atlantic EMS units for the City of Lynn, City of Peabody, City of Salem, Town of Marblehead, with additional non-dedicated ALS and BLS used as backup when needed

Unit #	City
Medic 7	Lynn, City of
Ambulance 14	Lynn, City of
Ambulance 13	Lynn, City of
Ambulance 12	Lynn, City of
Ambulance 11	Lynn, City of
Medic 1	Peabody, City of
Medic 2	Peabody, City of
Medic 3	Peabody, City of
Ambulance 15	Peabody, City of
Medic 5	Salem, City of
Ambulance 16	Salem, City of
Medic 4	Marblehead, Town of

Field Supervisors

Cataldo and Atlantic Field Supervisors utilize non-transporting ALS vehicles. There is at least one on-duty supervisor, 24-hours-a-day, responsible for all three operational divisions spanning the entire coverage area. In the field, they provide ALS intercepts and interventions, and general field support to road crews as needed. Generally a field supervisor will respond with the ambulance to large-scale or serious incidents that may require an EMS command be established. Examples of such incidents include: rollover motor vehicle collisions (MVCs), fire scenes, community EMS details, and mass-casualty incidents (MCIs).

References

External links

• Official site