Sanford HERO Award - FM Ambulance
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VITALSIGNS
F-MAMBULANCESERVICE
Spring 2021 Compassion, Excellence and Community
Sanford HERO Award
Rick Cameron, director of EMS operations
at F-M Ambulance, was awarded the
Sanford Hero Award in January. The
Sanford Hero Award is presented to
employees who demonstrate excellence in
the Sanford values.
Rick was nominated by his co-workers for
his continuous commitment to safety
throughout F-M Ambulance. One of the
nomination submissions read, "Rick is a
shining example of how to lead a safety-
conscious team; he uses the skills that he
aa
learned as a leader in the military to make Ready Wheels and F-M Ambulance successful in serving
our community. Rick's steadfast commitment to safety has made him the go-to person when any
employees have questions about safety or even a near-miss experience. Rick has been a driving
force in developing our company's culture of safety and encouraging new employees to feel
empowered to speak up for the safety of not only themselves, but their partner, their patient, and
others on scene. Rick was instrumental in creating the FMA Safety Committee, which brought
together employees and leadership to look for safety gaps in our daily processes."
"Rick's dedication to F-M Ambulance, our employees and the people that we serve is unwavering.
When an accident or near-miss occurs, he investigates with an unprecedented level of detail in order
to fully understand what happened, how it happened, and why. He takes that knowledge and uses it
to operationalize safety initiatives that benefit our patients, staff and the public in general."
Rick has also been instrumental in several initiatives dealing with mental health. He was a key player
in the development of the City of Fargo's Mobile Outreach Program for homeless and intoxicated
persons. He also played a large role in gaining access to Crisis Intervention Training for F-M
Ambulance employees, which gave FMA EMTs and paramedics better skills to deal with mental
health emergencies. Rick was also a strong force in developing Sanford's Peer Assistance Crisis
Team, which provides peer support to staff who have gone through traumatic, life-changing
experiences in the course of the job. F-M Ambulance is lucky to have someone so committed to
safety on our team. Congratulations, Rick!
Did You Know... Although a water main break doesn't sound like the typical emergency that F-M Ambulance would respond to, many FMA staff responded to one on Wednesday, January 20. At around 9:30 AM, a water main in the area of 2nd Avenue North in Moorhead broke, which resulted in the water being shut of to Moorhead Rehabilitation and Healthcare Center (MRHC), a long-term care facility. Because the facility had no water, all of the residents needed to be relocated. F-M Ambulance worked with several other agencies to safely move the residents. How does FMA prepare for unexpected events like this? Every year, FMA administrators work with local nursing homes and long-term care centers to create a tactical plan, which is a rough draft of what would happen if a large-scale event caused the need to move a large amount of patients. As soon as the call came in for the water main break, the tactical plan was presented to responding units - this plan told them approximately how many residents MRHC had and how many of these residents were able to walk, would need a wheelchair, or were non-ambulatory. This information helped FMA paramedics and EMTs decide what resources were needed at the scene, which led to a quick and smooth evacuation. Each long-term care facility's tactical plans are updated annually, which also allows FMA to create a strong working relationship with the leadership at these long-term care centers. It takes a tremendous amount of work to prepare for major incidents in our aaaa community - and although we hope that things like this never happen, F-M Ambulance is well prepared if or when they do. We are proud of our staff - the EMTs and paramedics that we have are willing to jump in and help in any way, at any time.
"We Are Eternally Grateful..."
On January 6, 2020, Jessica Silveri had just gotten
done feeding her 3-week-old son, Sullivan. As Sullivan
lay relaxing on Jessica's lap, she glanced down and
saw that Sullivan was grey. As she looked closer, she
realized that Sullivan wasn't breathing. When she
picked Sullivan up, he was completely limp. Jessica's
husband Bill called 911 while she started rescue
breathing. While waiting for the ambulance to arrive,
Sullivan started and stopped breathing again several
times. The 911 dispatcher helped Jessica keep
breathing for Sullivan while her husband waited for
first responders.
When the police department, fire department and
ambulance arrived, Sullivan was breathing on his own,
but continued to have short times that he would stop breathing. FMA paramedics helped keep Jessica
calm and get ready for the trip to bring Sullivan to the hospital.
Sullivan was diagnosed with severe RSV and spent 18 days in the hospital before being discharged.
On January 6, 2021 - exactly one year later - Jessica and Sullivan stopped by F-M Ambulance to
thank the paramedics and 911 dispatcher who helped save his life that day.
"I was so panicked, but Stephanie kept me calm - she used clear communication and she was able to
easily redirect me in my frantic state without being condescending or judging me. With three boys, it's
very likely that we will need 911 services again in the future... we are very fortunate that our
community has such great services. We are eternally grateful for the help that you provided that day."
B.L.A.S.T. Babysitting Camp
The B.L.A.S.T. babysitting day camp is a course developed
by the American Academy of Pediatrics for teens and pre-
teens to learn about the responsibilities of caring for
children. Using scenario-based learning, the class
addresses staying safe and dealing with emergency
situations. Participants learn CPR and first aid for children
as well as when to call 911 and what will happen if they do
need emergency assistance. At the end of the course,
participants will get a tour of an ambulance, a certificate of
completion and a first aid kit to bring with them when they
babysit. For more information or to register for the B.L.A.S.T.
babysitters day camp, go to www.shemse.org.
Skills Fair
Did you know that nationally registered EMTs and paramedics need to recertify every two years? In
order to recertify, EMTs need 40 hours of continuing education and paramedics need a total of 60
hours.
One of the ways that our employees obtain continuing education hours is by attending skills fairs.
Skills fairs are designed to refresh crew members on skills that they may not use very often and to
educate them about new procedures, medications, or devices. Topics for FMA's biannual skills fairs
are chosen from feedback from hospital departments such as stroke, cardiac or trauma, notable calls
that crews have responded on, and crew inquiries after a difficult or unusual call.
In January, FMA crews participated in a skills fair that focused on the following areas:
Traumatic emergencies - combat gauze and the proper way to pack wounds
Behavioral emergencies - working with other responders to provide the best care for patients
experiencing an atypical behavioral emergency
EMT skills - medication review, airway skills and CPAP
Paramedic skills - training on a new ventilator
Buckle Up with Bucky
Due to COVID-19, the Buckle Up with Bucky
program looks a little different this year!
Normally, FMA paramedics and EMTs go
into area classrooms to deliver a seat belt
safety presentation to kids in grades K - 2.
Because schools are not allowing non-
school personnel into their facilities, Buckle
Up with Bucky is being delivered virtually!
The 30-minute virtual presentation creates a
fun and easy way for EMS professionals to
teach children about seat belt safety.
Students watch a short video in their
classroom; they then connect with the
BUWB instructor virtually to hear about the
rules
raa of riding in a car. The presentation concludes with the paramedic or EMT reading the "Buckle Up
with Bucky" book. To learn more, please contact Kristi Engelstad at 701-364-1759.
Welcome to the FMA Team!
Tova Noreen Paramedic Are you an EMT or paramedic
who is interested in working
Austin Osland Paramedic for F-M Ambulance, Hillsboro
Ambulance or Thief River
Laura Fouts EMT
Falls Area Ambulance?
Sarah Yoho EMT
Check out sanfordhealth.jobs
Josh Orozco EMT to see what positions we have
available! We'd love to have
KayCee Cruz Dispatcher you join our team!
FMA Employee Fun Facts
Rick Cameron is FMA's longest-serving employee. In July, he will celebrate
30 years at F-M Ambulance!
FMA Paramedic Jessie Pestel recently accepted a position as a full-time
Community Paramedic - congratulations, Jessie!
FMA is featuring many of our employees on our Facebook page - check it
out to learn some fun things about people you know!
Health Highlight Normally, our spring newsletter would showcase Save a Life Saturday - a hands-only CPR event that F-M Ambulance has hosted for 5 years. Unfortunately, due to COVID, we were unable to hold Save a Life Saturday this year... but we still want to highlight the importance of knowing hands-only CPR! In January, a group of sudden cardiac arrest survivors met for the first time. The survivors shared their stories with each other and helped brainstorm ideas to increase the number of community members who know and are willing to perform hands-only CPR. Throughout the month of February, FMA highlighted some of their stories on Facebook. Do you know CPR? It's quick and easy to learn - and you never know when you might be able to save a life. For more information, call our education department at 701-364-1750 or go to handsonlycpr.org.
The Sanford Health EMS Education (SHEMSE) team has
been busy! Check out all of the exciting things happening!
The US Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration
(SAMHSA) grant for Rural EMT Training has been a great success. Our
current EMT class is the largest we have ever had starting with over 100
students; nearly half of those in attendance come from rural areas across
ND, SD, and MN. The SHEMSE team is preparing a draft for the second
round of this grant and hope to expand to western ND and other areas of MN.
An additional part of the SAMHSA grant is to provide mental health training in
our area. Classes will likely be held in Fargo, Thief River Falls, and Luverne.
They are also working closely with a committee in Sanford to bring more
mental health training to staff there, and to modify it to meet our own internal
EMS needs.
The Sanford/TrainND EMT Apprenticeship program will start in September.
Participants will be hired by FMA and put through an intensive, fast-paced
EMT course and orientation program, then immediately start working.
Application information will be released soon.
NDSCS is planning a Workforce Career Academy in southwest Fargo to open in the fall of 2022.
This building will house both high school and college level courses in construction and mechanical
trades as well as healthcare fields. We have been working with the planning team to ensure that
our EMT and paramedic programs have the rooms and spaces they need to teach effectively. The
partnership between NDSCS and SHEMSE allows us to provide high quality EMTs and paramedics
to F-M Ambulance, our rural Sanford ambulance services, as well as a large number of rural
services in western MN and eastern ND.
Due to the pandemic, we had to suspend in-person
meetings of our Explorers troop. Instead of ride alongs,
our Explorer leaders decided to provide participants
with a series of Facebook videos that help explain
what EMTs and paramedics do and how EMS works. If
you are (or know) a local high school who may be FMA Virtual Ride Along Video
interested in the FMA Explorers post, let us know!
We hope that you have enjoyed this edition of Vital Signs, a quarterly newsletter distributed by F-M
Ambulance. An electronic version of this newsletter can be found on our website,
www.fmambulance.com. If you have an story ideas, comments or questions about Vital Signs,
please contact Kristi Engelstad at 701-364-1759 or kristi.engelstad@fmambulance.com.
F-M Ambulance 2215 18th Street South Fargo, ND 58103
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