COPE: Community Outreach and Public Education

Bensalem has a large infrastructure that includes a large senior high school, 2 public middle schools, 6 public elementary schools, and several other private schools. Bensalem has a 100+ officer police department and 6 volunteer fire companies. Bensalem EMS is the only ambulance service serving Bensalem Township.

It is easy to see that Bensalem Township is a very busy community and is still growing. Currently, all EMS efforts have been focused on operations. Bensalem EMS answers nearly 9,000 calls per year. The Squad is equipped with 8 advanced life support ambulances, a basic life support (BLS) ambulance, and a Mobile Stroke Unit (MSU) specialty ambulance. Bensalem EMS has also helped to establish two first responder engine companies and four AED police units in recent years.

Now is the time for Bensalem EMS to once again take a step toward the future, through public education and aggressive prevention programs. Other programs are geared to begin providing help prior to EMS arrival, such as by-stander CPR training and AED programs. This program lays the groundwork for the future of EMS,and will impact not only Bensalem Township but the entire Bucks County region.

Studies across the United States have shown communities with strong public outreach and education programs, have dramatically reduced the rate of morbidity and mortality for victims of sudden illness and injury. This is made possible through the public having the ability to intervene in the event of an emergency and bridging the gap until EMS personnel arrive on scene.

Prior to C.O.P.E., Bensalem Township had no organized effort to promote education about emergencies and the EMS system to the public. Bensalem EMS intends to promote an aggressive program to educate the public, and to promote the use of AED’s in the community and the workplace. While the Squad is willing to devote itself fully to this project, our resources are limited. Much of Project C.O.P.E.’s funding must be raised through the public and private sectors.

The mission of Project C.O.P.E. is to promote public awareness about the EMS system through education and training, to provide health education information to help our community members live healthier and safer lives, and to provide state-of-the-art training on a variety of programs and classes. Our community outreach and public education efforts will be offered to all segments of the community. Whether in a school, a business, or our senior center, our goal is to help raise overall health and safety awareness.

As part of C.O.P.E Bensalem EMS also operates the Bensalem Community Response Unit (BCRU). BCRU is a specialized unit designed to respond to overdoses and other substance-related emergencies that occur in Bensalem and is activated by a 911 call. It is a collaboration between the Bensalem Police Department, Bensalem Emergency Medical Services, Jefferson Torresdale Hospital, Family Service Association of Bucks County and the Bucks County Drug & Alcohol Commission, Inc. Learn more about BCRU

Logo: Old and New

In late 2019, 20 years after Project C.O.P.E began, we decided it was time to update our logo as we expanded the program adding the Bensalem Community Response Unit (BCRU) to the services we provide to our community members. While the original concept of Project C.O.P.E remains unchanged, it is now more important than ever to realize that community, which is the center of C.O.P.E is engrained in our mission statement.

The “linked hands” in our previous logo are now represented by arrows. The arrows in the logo point to the word C.O.P.E. displaying that the emergency worker, industry, government, and the community are needed to direct their energy and resources together, in equal parts, to accomplish a shared goal to aggressively educate the public we serve.

COPE: Symbol, Logo and Colors

The American Heart Association developed the “Chain of Survival” to promote early access, early CPR, early defibrillation, and early ALS care. A chain is only as strong as its weakest link. The C.O.P.E. symbol looks inside the chain to see what makes up the links. Inside the links, one finds community members holding hands to demonstrate unity and strength. Each member of the community is represented in a meaningful color.

RED:

The color of blood and the heart represents the emergency worker. The emergency worker must put forth the effort to share his or her knowledge with others.

GOLD:

The color of wealth represents industry and commerce. These sectors of our community must join in the chain by helping to fund community programs and taking time out of their own efforts to be trained in health and safety issues.

PURPLE:

The color of royalty represents government. Public officials must work with Project C.O.P.E. to help find funding and ensure that current health and safety regulations are reviewed and improved if needed.

GREEN:

An earth color represents the lay people of our community. Their education is crucial to their environment in Project C.O.P.E. our community members are needed to be first responders and to initiate the EMS system.