The Annapolis fire department is getting much needed funding to replace outdated heart defibrillators, but more money is needed to replace decade-old equipment.
The defibrillators “we have now are functional, but they?re at the end of their life expectancy,” said Capt. David Twigg, who heads the emergency medical services arm of the department.
U.S. Sens. Barbara Mikulski and Benjamin Cardin recently announced federal approval of a $108,000 grant to buy five defibrillators with monitors that show heart rates. The new machines replace ones that are 10 years old, one year past their life expectancy, officials said.
But the grant only covers five of the 21 machines the department has in use, Twigg said.
The defibrillator costs on average $2,400; with the heart monitors, the costs jump on average to $19,000 each.
Like other fire and EMS departments, Annapolis is struggling to pay for increasing expensive medical equipment because of the rising oil price. To avoid latex allergies, most of the supplies are petroleum based, Twigg said.
Supply costs have risen by 75 percent, he said.
Though Annapolis rescuers respond to 9,000 calls a year, the department is small compared to others in the region, making it harder to vie for grant funding, officials said.
But officials are optimistic about the new defibrillators which can provide more advanced life support.
“Annapolis residents are going to get definitive care on each engine that responds to a call,” Twigg said.
The department won a 2005 federal grant to install an emergency generator and sprinkler system that eventually saved a station building from a fire.
