EMS Week Honors

Emergency Responders

By Nancy K. Crevier

The American Council of Emergency Physicians has announced the 33rd Annual Emergency Medical Services Week for May 14 to 20. This year’s theme of “EMS — Serving Our Health Care’s Front Line” emphasizes the value of the more than 750,000 emergency medical services (EMS) providers nationwide who supply lifesaving services every day as first responders to accidents and other health emergencies.

EMS provides out of hospital patient care; ambulance transport; public health education; and first emergency response. EMS members put in hundreds of hours for certification and education every year to ensure the best possible care for those who call upon their services.

EMS originated in response to a need for immediate medical care due to accidental injuries and cardiac conditions. In the past 30 years of EMS history, its role has evolved from strictly emergency aid to primary safety net in many cases for under- or uninsured Americans. EMS in most towns now assists in prevention education and offers wellness programs, as well.

Deb Aubin has been an EMT and paramedic with Newtown Volunteer Ambulance Corps since 1987. She has seen ambulance calls and patient care in Newtown change to meet the new needs of residents over the years. “Occasionally, the call we get is a person who is just lonely. We’ve made tea for people, we’ve made lunch, we’ve gone shopping for the elderly. You see people who have nobody else to reach out to, and that’s okay,” she said.

What she worries about is that basic care calls can sometimes interfere with response to true trauma in a town where EMS is staffed strictly by volunteers. “But you can’t say what an emergency is or isn’t,” she emphasized. “It is different for everyone.”

Liz Cain, Newtown Ambulance Corps chief, has also observed changes in EMS since she first dabbled in it in the late 1970s. “I was with a Waterbury company that is no longer in existence, and women were allowed to do only women’s transports. We couldn’t do overnights, because of the men staying overnight. That didn’t work for me,” she recalled. It was nearly two decades later that Deb Aubin encouraged her to get her EMT certification, and Chief Cain has risen through the ranks since then.

Being part of a volunteer emergency medical service means many hours spent away from family and friends and long hours of physical labor. It is not for everyone, but by and large, said Chief Cain and Ms Aubin, Newtown volunteers believe that what they give to the town will one day return to them. For both of these women, it is personal satisfaction that sustains them and keeps them on the staff. “It’s a good feeling, helping people,” explained Chief Cain.

“It’s that pay-it-forward type of thing,” added Ms Aubin.

There are simple things that residents can do to make a difficult job easier, suggested Ms Aubin, and what better time to think about them than EMS Week?

“Identify your house,” urged Ms Aubin. Many houses in Newtown are not adequately identified by a house number or road name, delaying the response time for the ambulance service. “A number at the bottom of the driveway would be a big help,” she said.

If it is night when the call is placed to 911, turn on the lights, inside and out.

Animals, particularly dogs, should be locked up before the EMTs arrive at the scene whenever possible. A normally docile pet can become overly protective when its owner is hurt.

If there is an extra person in the house, send that person to the end of the driveway to flag down the ambulance.

Last, but not least, suggested Ms Aubin, “A clean list of medications being taken by the patient is helpful. List only the ones that the patient is actually taking.”

More than 60 volunteer Newtown EMS providers will be honored by Danbury Hospital at a banquet to be held at the Stony Hill Inn in Bethel on Wednesday, May 17. That number does not reflect the more than 200 volunteer firefighters of Newtown who also provide first response medical attention at accidents and fires.

At that banquet, regional EMT of the Year, EMT-I of the Year, and Educator of the Year will be announced. The Chris Blackwell Excellence Award will also be announced at that time, said Chief Cain.