The Mojave Chamber of Commerce recognized Hall Ambulance Service for 20-years of service during its monthly meeting at the Mariah Country Inn, on May 22.

During the presentation, Mark Corum, director of media services for Hall Ambulance recanted how the Company came to east Kern. “It was the day after the Northridge earthquake in January 1994, when the residents of eastern Kern County had a crisis of their own,” Corum said, “the contracted ambulance provider halted service without notice, leaving the area without emergency medical services coverage.”

According to Corum, the County of Kern contacted Harvey L. Hall, founder and president of Hall Ambulance Service, to see if he could provide emergency coverage. Within hours, a CODE 3 procession of Hall Ambulances responded from Bakersfield across SR 58 through the Tehachapi Mountains, into Mojave, California City and Rosamond.

For the ensuing four months, Hall Ambulance continued to provide paramedic service to the area, while the County of Kern coordinated a competitive process to select a permanent ambulance provider. On May 10, 1994, the Board of Supervisors awarded EOA 11 to Hall Ambulance Service. At the same time, Hall formed a relationship with the Muroc Healthcare District so the people of Boron could receive the same timely paramedic service as the other desert communities with a larger population.

To ensure the most efficient coverage Hall Ambulance established ambulance stations throughout the area, including POST 14 in Mojave, POST 15 in Rosamond, POST 17 in Boron and POST 19 in California City.

Hall Ambulance prides itself on delivering high-quality paramedic service to this desert region. In 2013, Hall Paramedics responded to over 5,000 requests for medical aid, with an exceptional, overall response time compliance of 99.64%. To maintain this level of service, 20 paramedics and 20 EMTs are dedicated to working in east Kern, in addition, three paramedic field supervisors provide day-to-day management services to keep the system running smoothly.

The Company has engaged itself in each of the communities it serves, participating in 63 public education and community service events in 2013, alone. An example of this commitment is Hall personally donating and placing automated external defibrillators into each of the senior centers located in Boron, California City, Mojave and Rosamond. These devices, intended for use by trained laypersons, can make a tremendous difference for someone experiencing cardiac arrest—until paramedics arrive.

Patient satisfaction is something that Hall holds close to his heart. He personally reads each comment returned on the monthly quality surveys. When a patient concern is noted, it is immediately forwarded to the appropriate division manager for review and follow-up with the patient. For example, if a customer comments that the ambulance ride was rough, that unit will be sent to the Company’s fleet repair facility to be inspected. The result is impressive, in 2013, sixty-six percent of respondents stated that Hall Ambulance provided “Exemplary” service across their five measurements of success, with a total combined customer satisfaction score of 95%.