About Us – Wakefield Ambulance Association

History

WAA was founded in September 1973 by concerned residents of the southern end of Lancaster County. The founding Board of Directors realized that their community was in desperate need of local emergency medical care, so they organized with initial funding from the Wakefield Lions Club. WAA began as an all-volunteer squad of 12 providers trained in First Aid and CPR. During their first year of 911 response, beginning March 1974, WAA volunteers responded to just under 100 emergencies. Licensed by the Pennsylvania Department of Health as a Basic Life Support EMS agency, WAA continued to operate as an all-volunteer agency until the early 2000’s when one paid employee was hired to fill the void left by a nationwide trend of decreasing volunteerism. 2007 was a banner year for the company, as it saw the construction and opening of the current ambulance station, the first and only permanent home that WAA has had in its history. Over the past three years, the leadership at WAA has taken the initiative to become a local leader in EMS. WAA now participates in Pennsylvania’s “Prepared for Pediatrics” recognition program and developed its own “Good Neighbor Checks” to identify high-risk patients within its response area and conduct weekly check-ups with this demographic. In July 2017, WAA increased its level of licensure to the Intermediate Advanced Life Support (IALS) level, becoming the first BLS agency in Lancaster County, and one of less than 15 agencies in the entire Commonwealth of Pennsylvania to pursue that license. The IALS program allows advanced-level providers at WAA to utilize additional life-saving medications and therapies to treat patients with critical emergencies sooner, ensuring better care for patients.
Today, WAA is a hybrid agency with 3 paid and 35 volunteer personnel that responds to over 600 emergencies every year in its service area of 65 square miles. Overall, WAA has grown considerably in 45 years and is now a progressive, leading EMS agency. The volunteers, staff, and Board thank you for your support and look forward to serving you for many years to come!