Bartow, Fla. (Aug. 29, 2025) — Polk County Fire Rescue (PCFR) received a perfect score on its renewal from the Commission on Accreditation of Ambulance Services (CAAS).
Fire Chief Shawn Smith credits the hard work and dedication of PCFR’s personnel, the Office of Medical Direction (OMD) staff and the support of county leadership on achieving both the perfect score and reaccreditation.
PCFR staff are committed to being a leading emergency medical services provider.
The Commission on Accreditation of Ambulance Services (CAAS) was established to encourage and promote quality patient care in America’s medical transportation system. CAAS is an independent Commission that sets a comprehensive series of standards for the ambulance service industry.
“The CAAS accreditation is a special achievement for any organization as it shows their commitment to being a leader of Emergency Medical Services,” said Fire Chief Shawn Smith. “The hard work of the entire organization is apparent by not only achieving the difficult reaccreditation but by also attaining a perfect score with no noted deficiencies from reviewers. It shows the world class care Polk County Fire Rescue delivers to the residents and visitors of our county.”
PCFR first received CAAS accreditation in September 2019 with their first reaccreditation in 2022. This makes PCFR one of only 24 CAAS-accredited departments in the state of Florida and one of 187 in the United States and Canada.
The CAAS accreditation process is an extensive evaluation from field operations to finances and other administrative practices. The process begins with a self-assessment of the department before external reviewers visit and evaluate the department. Once the external assessment is complete, an independent panel reviews the findings and determines if the organization meets or exceeds the standards for accreditation.