(a)An emergency ambulance provider shall offer to all emergency ambulance employees, upon the employee’s request, peer support services. The services shall provide peer representatives, reflective of the provider’s workforce both in job positions and personal experiences, who are available to come to the aid of their fellow employees on a broad range of emotional or professional issues. The emergency ambulance provider shall incorporate selection criteria for peer support team members into program policies.
(b)For purposes of this chapter, the following definitions apply:
(1)“Confidential communication”
means any information, including, but not limited to, written or oral communication, transmitted between an emergency ambulance employee, a peer support team member, or a crisis
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(a)
An emergency ambulance provider shall offer to all emergency ambulance employees, upon the employee’s request, peer support services. The services shall provide peer representatives, reflective of the provider’s workforce both in job positions and personal experiences, who are available to come to the aid of their fellow employees on a broad range of emotional or professional issues. The emergency ambulance provider shall incorporate selection criteria for peer support team members into program policies.
(b)
For purposes of this chapter, the following definitions apply:
(1)
“Confidential communication”
means any information, including, but not limited to, written or oral communication, transmitted between an emergency ambulance employee, a peer support team member, or a crisis hotline or crisis referral service staff member while the peer support team member provides peer support services or the crisis hotline or crisis referral service staff member provides crisis services and in confidence by a means that, as far as the emergency ambulance employee is aware, does not disclose the information to third parties other than those who are present to further the interests of the emergency ambulance employee in delivery of peer support services or those to whom disclosures are reasonably necessary for the transmission of the information or an accomplishment of the purposes for which the peer support team member is providing services. “Confidential communication” does not include a communication in
which an emergency ambulance employee discloses the commission of a crime or a communication that reveals the emergency ambulance employee’s intent to defraud or deceive an investigation into a critical incident.
(2)
“Crisis referral services” include all public or private organizations that provide consultation and treatment resources for personal problems, including mental health issues, chemical dependency, domestic violence, gambling, financial problems, and other personal crises. Neither crisis referral services nor crisis hotlines include services provided by an employee association, labor relations representative, or labor relations organization, or any entity owned or operated by an employee association, labor relations representative, or labor relations organization.
(3)
“Critical incident” means an event or situation that involves crisis, disaster, trauma, or emergency.
(4)
“Critical incident stress” means the acute or cumulative psychological stress or trauma that emergency ambulance personnel may experience in providing emergency services in response to a critical incident. The stress or trauma is an unusually strong emotional, cognitive, behavioral, or physical reaction that may interfere with normal functioning and could lead to post-traumatic stress injuries, including, but not limited to, one or more of the following:
(A)
Physical and emotional illness.
(B)
Failure of usual coping mechanisms.
(C)
Loss of
interest in the job or normal life activities.
(D)
Personality changes.
(E)
Loss of ability to function.
(F)
Psychological disruption of personal life, including their relationship with a spouse, child, or friend.
(5)
“Emergency ambulance employee” means a person who meets both of the following requirements:
(A)
Is an emergency medical technician, dispatcher, paramedic, or other licensed or certified ambulance transport person who contributes to the delivery of ambulance services.
(B)
Is employed by an emergency ambulance provider.
(6)
“Emergency ambulance provider” means an employer that provides ambulance services, but not including the state, or any political subdivision thereof, in its capacity as the direct employer of a person meeting the description contained in subparagraph (A) of paragraph (5).
(A)
“Emergency ambulance provider” does not include a provider that satisfies both of the following criteria:
(i)
The provider operates emergency medical services aircraft.
(ii)
The provider does not operate any ground ambulance services.
(B)
For purposes of this paragraph, “emergency medical services aircraft” includes any
aircraft utilized for the purpose of prehospital emergency patient response and transport as air service. These aircraft are specially constructed, modified, or equipped and used for the primary purposes of responding to emergency calls and transporting critically ill or injured patients whose medical flight crew has, at a minimum, two attendants certified or licensed in advanced life support.
(C)
For purposes of this paragraph, “ground ambulance services” means the emergency, including advanced life support services, and nonemergency transportation of a person by an individual licensed pursuant to Article 1 (commencing with Section 2500) and Article 2 (commending with Section 2510) of Chapter 2.5 of Division 2 of the Vehicle Code and health care services are provided to a patient for the duration of the transportation.
(7)
“Peer support program” means a program administered by the emergency ambulance provider to deliver peer support services to emergency ambulance employees consistent with this chapter.
(8)
“Peer support services” means authorized peer support services provided by a peer support team member to emergency ambulance employees and their immediate families affected by a critical incident or the cumulative effect of witnessing multiple critical incidents. Peer support services assist those affected by a critical incident in coping with critical incident stress and mitigating reactions to critical incident stress, including reducing the risk of post-traumatic stress and other injuries. Peer support services may include any of the following:
(A)
Precrisis education.
(B)
Critical incident stress defusings.
(C)
Critical incident stress debriefings.
(D)
On-scene support services.
(E)
One-on-one support services.
(F)
Consultation.
(G)
Referral services.
(H)
Confidentiality obligations.
(I)
The impact of toxic stress on health and well-being.
(J)
Grief support.
(K)
Substance abuse awareness and approaches.
(L)
Active listening skills.
(M)
Psychological first aid.
(9)
“Peer support team” means a team or teams composed of emergency ambulance employees, hospital staff, clergy, and educators who have completed a peer support training course.
(10)
“Peer support team member” means an emergency ambulance employee who has completed an approved peer support training course.