San Juan Island EMS has been rated first in EMS services in a quarterly survey of patients served by 29 organizations nationwide.

This is the third quarter that San Juan Island EMS patients have participated in the national survey; the local EMS agency has been ranked first overall by its patients in each survey.

Shortly after the patient is transported, a patient satisfaction survey is sent to a random sample of all EMS patients. The survey asks patients to evaluate the service they received in 24 areas that include overall satisfaction, dispatch, the ambulance and equipment, care received, and office assistance.

The results for each of the 29 participating organizations nationwide are tabulated and compared against a national benchmark for each area as well as in an overall comparison to other organizations. In the most recent quarter, the San Juan Island EMS team was ranked first overall by its patients and also was the leader in 13 of the 24 specific evaluation areas.

“We are very proud of the results achieved by our career and volunteer EMS staff and the dispatchers and IIMC personnel who make up the San Juan EMS team,” EMS Chief Jim Cole said in a press release. “The validation of our efforts by our patients is a very important achievement, and we appreciate their feedback. Every team member’s dedication to providing the finest dispatch, EMS, and medical service is an important component of these results. We will study all of the results and continually seek to further improve the quality of care delivered across the board.”