Mission

In the new millennium King-American is proud of a century of service.  Looking to the challenges of the future, we reaffirm our mission:

To provide the people of San Francisco and Northern California with affordable,
pre-hospital emergency are and medical transportation services that meet the highest professional standards of quality patient care.

King-American is dedicated to:

• the constant advancement of its staff's professional knowledge and skills,
• the use of the most advanced medical technology and equipment,
• individualized, personal service to the patient and family, including coordination with other care providers,
• efficient and cost-effective service, including the provision of the levels of care appropriate to quality outcomes and other needs, and
• responsible participation in both general and related medical community activities.

Communications and Dispatch Center

At King-American the assignment and dispatch of ambulances uses the most advanced system available (Priority Dispatch). Professionally trained emergency medical dispatchers (EMD) ensure the timely delivery of life-saving care. Advanced features of our system includes GPS (Global Positioning System), location data, pre-arrival instruction and priority in EMS response

The Communication Center can send data to an ambulance on the streets within seconds of receiving a call. With their high level of training and state-of-the-art data systems, the EMDs effectively dispatch units to emergency calls while continuing to manage the provision of scheduled services.

Innovation

King-American is the oldest private provider of emergency transport services in San Francisco.  The company was founded before the 1906 quake and has been under the present ownership for over 50 years.  Since its beginning an important principle of company management has been initiative and leadership in monitoring developments in medical care and redirecting company operations in response to changes within the health care system.

From its headquarters in a renovated Victorian in the center of San Francisco, the Company operated one of the first nursing registries and physicians' exchanges in the City.  As the benefits of pre-hospital emergency care response became apparent, it was the first company in the City to train 100% of its staff as paramedics, to utilize Byrd ventilators, and to carry heart-lung resuscitators as recommended by the American Heart Association.  It is the first ambulance company in the City and one of the first in the Western United States to install the Automatic Vehicle Locator (AVL) system.

For nearly 35 years King-American has been a recognized pioneer in the field of neonatal intensive care transports, having designed a specialized incubator system.  It was the first to be recognized by California Children's Services and Medi-Cal.

Leadership

King-American management has always been extensively involved with national, state and local professional activities and with official state and county emergency medical authorities.  The Company is a member of the American Ambulance Association, the California Ambulance Association and the San Francisco Ambulance Association.

The Company's past Vice President and General Manager served as President of the California Ambulance Association and was appointed by the Speaker of the State Assembly as its representative to the California Commission on Emergency Services.  Locally, as an appointee of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, he served on the Emergency Medical Care Committee of the City and County of San Francisco for over 10 years, and was elected chairman for two terms.

In fulfilling its mission of patient service, King-American seeks to serve both the professional medical community and the general public.  The Company proudly continues this tradition in the 21st Century.