ABOUT US

ParaBasic Ambulance Service provides medical transportation to residents and medical facilities in Horry, Georgetown, Williamsburg, Berkeley and Charleston Counties. The company was founded by the combined efforts of husband and wife team Michael and Stephanie Ostrander. They each share a strong interest in providing compassionate care for the sick and injured. They were able to take a new approach towards the ambulance industry and bring a new set of eyes and fresh outlook by joining their experiences together. Investing in a philosophy that is not only important to be staffed with the most qualified and experienced personnel, but each and every patient must be given the same level of high quality care. Together, their work in the local communities spans more than 30 years experience. The future of ParaBasic is bright! Today, they continually expand their role in healthcare and throughout the communities by providing a tangible, economic and social benefit that extends beyond their total commitment to saving lives and ensuring the health and safety of their patients. ParaBasic continues to provide a level of service that is recognized for its superiority and known locally for their commitment to their communities.

Administration

MICHAEL OSTRANDER, Director/Paramedic-Firefighter
A native of New Jersey, Michael began his career in the emergency medical service industry in 1989 by obtaining his certification as an Emergency Medical Technician. In 1991, he moved to Georgetown, SC and established a career with the Georgetown County Emergency Medical Services where he quickly became one of the area’s finest Paramedics. After a few years of service, he was named Supervisor and given the responsibilities in general management including duties such as staffing, scheduling, employee evaluations, field operations, disaster response, hurricane preparedness, and establishing EMS protocols, policies and procedures. Mike was named Chairman of the Georgetown County Grievance Committee and later expanded his list of services with Georgetown County EMS by accepting the Interim Management position where he managed the entire department and took on additional responsibilities that included billing and budget planning, grant writing, capital improvements, operational and financial performance, development of short and long-term strategic plans, established compliance programs as they related to HIPAA, OSHA and the Center for Disease Control and Prevention. He met regularly with county officials such as the county administrator, county council, and district fire chiefs. He was also named chairman of the Trauma Committee meeting for Georgetown Hospital Systems where he met regularly with Georgetown Hospital Administration and their Medical Control Physicians.

After years of service and obtaining leadership positions with local, municipal and county agencies, Michael came to the conclusion that he would be more effective in serving his community if he were able to perform the same tasks as those he was leading. Through the years, Michael has maintained his Paramedic and Firefighter certification and continues to ride on EMS units. He augmented his education with a wide variety of college courses. A passionate educator, Michael still teaches first aid and CPR classes to individuals throughout the community. A witness to extraordinary advancements in the ambulance industry, Michael displays his personal dedication to the industry and his commitment has been demonstrated by his personal dedication for more than twenty years.

Michael's Certifications

• Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS)
• Basic Trauma Life Support (BTLS)
• Pre-hospital Trauma Life Support (PHTLS)
• Pediatric Advanced Life Support (PALS)
• Pre-hospital Pediatric Life Support (PPLS)
• Pre-hospital Education for the Emergency Provider (PEEP)
• Critical Incident Stress Management (CISM)
• Deputy Coroner
• American Heart Association CPR & First Aid Instructor

STEPHANIE OSTRANDER, Assistant Director/NREMT-B
A native of South Carolina, Stephanie began her career in 1996 at Georgetown Hospital where she accepted a position that trained her in various aspects of medical billing. She supplemented her training in medical billing when Blue Cross and Blue Shield of South Carolina hired her in 1998. By working with sizeable databases intended to process and pay health insurance claims, she was able to further expand her knowledge in the health insurance industry. Her duties included processing, paying or denying electronic and hard copy claims, researching medical conditions and medical records, coordinating the resolution of appeals and facilitating claims payment when appropriate and ensuring that coverage decisions are in accordance with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS) regulations, verifying printed claims and claim status/edit reports for accuracy to assure prompt payment. She obtained leadership positions and monitored other co-workers claim activities and provided jurisdictional direction by maintaining a diary on all claims in the team including frequent diaries on complex or high exposure claims. Her essential functions and responsibilities included identifying and advising management of trends, problems and a recommended course of action. She informed management of reports and quality reviews in compliance with audit requirements, service contract requirements and quality standards.

Today, she continues to work directly with federal, state and local government entities in regard to coverage and other special initiatives pertaining to the ambulance industry. Stephanie works closely with the American Ambulance Association (AAA), the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS) and the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS). She also provides on-site training to healthcare facilities to ensure every individual is properly educated on the latest governmental changes in the ambulance billing industry. She maintains a quality assurance program to support the total performance management and the consistent delivery of quality claims service for ParaBasic by establishing colleague performance development plans specialized in medical claims and utilization review practices. She possesses a background in general business and technical knowledge of data administration tools and techniques. Her strong written and oral communication, analytical, problem-solving and project coordination skills give her the ability to meet and exceed performance competencies.

From claims processing to patient care, Stephanie’s dedication is evident. In 2005, she received her National Registry of EMT-Basic, allowing her to provide superior patient care with the same level of commitment she has for managing the day-to-day administration of ParaBasic. She still continues to ride on EMS units and her ongoing excellent quality of service shows her commitment to the industry. Stephanie displays her personal dedication to the industry for more than thirteen years.