San Joaquin County Emergency Medical Services
9 Ambulance Patients Offload Delays
Receiving hospitals are obligated pursuant to the federal Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act (EMTALA) to promptly provide each patient arriving at the receiving hospital with an appropriate medical screening examination and necessary stabilizing treatment for emergency medical conditions and labor within the hospital’s capability and capacity. SJCEMSA has determined that 20 minutes is the maximum time an ambulance should wait at any emergency department to be transferred to a hospital bed.
In 2025, SJCEMSA worked with stakeholders on the Ambulance Patient Offload Delay (APOD) subcommittee with three objectives: 1) Identify and review current transfer of care practices and identify ways to improve education and accuracy, 2) Identify and review barriers and efficiencies to hospital throughput, and 3) Identify local solutions to reduce ambulance patient offload delays greater than twenty (20) minutes.
SJCEMSA along with the designated receiving center hospitals located in San Joaquin County have been working diligently to improve APOD.
2025 Ambulance Patient Offload Delays by Hospital
ATTACHMENT A