The City of Austin's Emergency Medical Services Department provides 9-1-1 emergency medical response to the citizens of Austin and Travis County serving a population of over 2.2M citizens in a service region of over 1,039 square miles. While most of the assistance we give to the community is medical in nature, the smallest part of what we do involves truly time-critical life-threatening emergencies. Yet everything we do is about service: service to our patients, their families and loved ones; service to our community; and service to the people who make up Austin-Travis County Emergency Medical Services.

Service is more than simply responding to calls. It is evaluating what we do so that we can improve our performance and meet new needs as they become apparent. Service is working with our community to help people better care for themselves and each other. It is taking care of our own people, so they are better able to serve their patients and the community. Through this service, we have the opportunity to save the lives of some, and change the lives of many.

OUR MISSION

To provide excellent patient care to anyone, any time, any place to decrease suffering, improve the health of the community, and save lives.

OUR VISION

To be trusted by our community, employees, and partners as the clinical provider of choice that clearly demonstrates our value to our patients through our practices and outcomes and to be considered the organization others want to emulate.

OUR PILLARS OF EXCELLENCE

Our work is divided into four areas we call our Pillars of Excellence. These pillars include People, Service, Quality, and Finance and establish the framework for our culture and operational effectiveness. When the efforts within each of our pillars are executed well, the positive outcome is growth and sustainability.

People

People are our first pillar, and focus, because having a committed workforce that takes ownership of the department and its mission means we will always meet our commitments to the community and to each other.

Service

What we provide each and every day is service. Our service goal is to identify and meet our customers’ needs, exceeding their expectations whenever it is in our power to do so. It goes beyond our clinical services, as we always seek to leave the person or situation better than we found it.

Quality

Quality begins with hiring the best people, training them to do it right the first time, and continuously measuring and improving our performance. It is an iterative process. We never stop evaluating ourselves to improve the quality of our care for the community.

Finance

Because we are a publicly funded organization, it is our responsibility to act prudently with the community’s money and conduct business in a fiscally responsible manner. We continuously seek innovative ways to maximize the return on the dollars we spend and ensure our spending best meets the needs of our community.