MEMS Academy hits two home runs!!

Congratulations to Medic 7 on a 100% pass rate on their National Registry practical test





Congratulations to Rookie 14 on a 100% pass rate for their National Registry test.

New BLS Units Ordered

We are trying to take pressure off the ALS emergency side of the house. We have hired more full time EMTs and just order two more type 2 Wheeled Coach units. They should be delivered in 30 45 days. The newly hired EMTs will complete 2-3 weeks of classroom training and then will start out as drivers on BLS shifts. This is a departure of our normal way of doing business. Starting on the BLS units will allow time for learning geography, radio traffic, MEMS system etc.. in a slower setting. As FTO's become available they will move to the ALS side and resume their ALS training.

Vet Medicine ??

Trying out the "Howler"

In an effort to give you the best tools, we are evaluating one of the latest in emergency warning devices; the “Howler” The Howler provides deep, low frequency tones, which are able to penetrate other vehicles, alerting drivers and pedestrians of your approach.
They are currently being tested by LRFD, NLRFD and ASP. We placed it on 954 since the pickup style vehicles seem to have the most trouble getting noticed by traffic. If this works well, we are looking at putting them on the entire fleet.

New Valium Packaging

MEMS Challenge Coins & 25th Anniversary Artwork

MEMS’ Challenge Coins and 25th Anniversary Artwork are here!!!

The Challenge Coins are serialized (101 thru ???) and will be issued based upon current seniority.

The artwork, by Jim Mullenax, is specific to MEMS and was drawn in honor of our 25th Anniversary!

If you have been a full-time employee, in good standing for more than one year, you are eligible to receive these gifts. Employees who have not completed one year of full time employment must wait until their anniversary date to receive theirs.

These items will be available for pick-up from Lee Harper beginning this Thursday, July 16, 2009.

110/12 Volt A/C System

As you know cooling a unit is quite the task these days, especially when you add the problem with not being able to idle the unit all the time. We are beginning the process of moving some units around to help combat this problem.

Plugging the unit in, even in the summer
The Chevy units are not able to be idled for long periods of time. There is a new exhaust system that actually clogs up and causes the unit to run at reduced power if the unit idles too long. This could be quite a problem when given an emergency. To combat this we began to move to a 110/12 Volt A/C system a few years ago. This means, that when you plug it into a shore line, the A/C as well as the heat works. We are moving these units to the outlying stations during the summer months, some of the units will remain in the city. The goal is to have all our fleet equipment with a system like this to reduce idling time, and heat problems.

We are having signs made for the interior as well as the exterior to remind you to plug in the truck to keep it cool.
Unit 507 has a generator on it. We will be placing it on a 12 hour city car fulltime to test its ability to reduce idle time. This unit has its own unique procedure to be followed.

Setting the high idle
When you do have to idle a truck on scene, be sure to always set your emergency brake which enables the high idle. This helps the unit cool, as well as reduces the strain on the alternator. Failure to do this is causing some real issues. So you will know, the high idle causes the fan to run faster, causing the engine to run cooler, I know it sounds like it is going to blow up, but it really is better for the unit.

Idling at the hospitals
While I am talking about idling, the hospitals are asking us once again, to kill the units when in their ER bay. Our noise and exhaust are causing a problem in their building. Please respect this wish.


The following units have a 110/12 volt A/C system
126, 136, 137, 138, 228, 232, 415, 416, 420, 425, 502, 504, 513, 514, 519, 522, 609

5.11 Polo Shirts

Many of you have already made the switch to the 5.11 polo shirts (it’s the style w/ the pen pocket on the left sleeve). The polos have held up very well and has become the predominate polo ordered lately. Because of these issues, I have spoke w/ Greg about making it our official uniform polo shirt. Greg agreed and approved for us to make the switch. So, MEMS made a purchase of approx 800 polo shirts that’s (navy and long and short sleeve). The polo shirts are being embroidered right now and should be ready for orders to be filled next week. If you have ordered polos within the last week or so, give me a just a few more days, and you’ll be ready to go. If you have any questions, let me know. By the way, you can order your polo shirts on line through the MEMS Company Store, so you don’t have to fill out paperwork and leave on my desk, you can order them from the comfort of your house.

Company Store is up and running, so have a look…….
10 Minute Fitness is available, so get your butt in shape………
5.11 polos are the new polos, so update your shirts, if they need to be…….


As always, if you have any questions, please see Louis

10 Minute Fitness

I have all of the detail worked out and we now have an arrangement with 10 Minute Fitness centers for our exercise program. 10 Minute Fitness has 2 locations 1 in Little Rock (hwy 10) and the other in North Little Rock (by McCain). The store have 24 hrs access during the week and open approx 16 hours each day on Saturday and Sunday. 10 Minute Fitness has all of the modern conveniences for weight and cardio training.

The arrangement is: 10 Minute Fitness will wave the $50.00 sign on fee and MEMS will payroll deduct the membership dues which are $10.00 per month (so you’re looking at $5.00 per pay period) that’s not a bad deal at all considering the resources that will be available to you. If you would like anything additional (i.e. tanning, personal training, they are available but you’ll have to work those option directly w/ 10 Minute Fitness). To get started, see Louis to fill out.

MEMS Company Store

Some of you may know and some may not, but MEMS now has an On-Line Company Store. The store is up and running and open for business. You can find it on line @ at our web address www.metroems.org. You’ll the see the “Company Store” box, just click on it and away you go. If you’ve ever ordered on line before, the store will look very familiar, if you haven’t ordered on line before, it’ll very easy to follow. Its important to know that we no long keep items like t-shirts, ball caps toboggans, etc on hand here at sta.1 so plan accordingly.

All you have to do is go through the items available for purchase, make you selections, and check out. When you check out, YOU WILL NOT BE ASKED FOR CREDIT CARD INFORMATION. Your order will be sent to my email, and I’ll get your order taken care. I will forward your order to store that warehouse’s our inventory, and the order will be here the same day or the very next day. The system has been in place for a couple weeks and has been working fine. Items that are approved Uniform Allowance will be posted to your uniform allowance, and items that are payroll deduct, will be deducted from your payroll check. If you have any questions, please see me. Also, fyi this will be order method for the sweat shirt order we use to do once a year. These type of items will be available year round.

Link to store

New Glucose Meters Coming

You will be seeing a new glucose meter on your ambulance in the next week. We decided to evaluate a new meter for several reasons and found the following differences:


a). Current meter takes 20 seconds to produce glucose result, Contour (new meter) takes only 5 seconds, Blood sample can be obtained from a capillary or venous site.



b). Current meter requires a code strip (to calibrate) and it must be checked regularly, Contour doesn’t require any type of coding or calibrating of the meter before the strips are added.



c). Current meter hi/low display is 500-20 range, Contour blood glucose range is 600 -10 range

The cost are the same between the meters. We believe after the field test, and the differences noted above the Contour meter will better fit our needs.

It functions the same as the old with the exceptions of.
1. No need to calibrate
2. The strips are stored in a small bottle and not packaged individually

NOTE- venous blood or capillary blood is acceptable to this unit

Great Work

I noticed two things in reviewing reports that I want to say job well done.


Response Times for June
While I am still premature, I wanted to acknowledge the effort that is being made to make our response times. While I know that there are several factors that the crew does not have any control over, there are several that you do such as reaction times, turn times, knowledge of where you are going etc, , and overall everyone seems to be managing these better.

Driving Report
I noticed on the latest driving report that we have improved significantly in backing with a spotter. As you know backing accidents are one of our largest preventable expenses.


I know I get busy sometimes and miss the opportunity to say job well done and Thank You, I did not want to miss this opportunity.

Great Job!


Greg

Pictures Available

We have posted some of the pictures of the anniversary banquet on line. The MEMS history Documentary is in final edit, I will let you know when it is available. Thank you again for making it a fun day!
Greg

on-line album

Swine Flu

The new strain of flu has been a part of our news over the past few days. We are meeting with our area health depart staff to monitor any activity form this strain in Arkansas. Let me remind you that we treat this threat like we would any other air or droplet borne exposure.

The following is an excerpt from a Health Department release from Dallas County today:


1. Any providers approaching an individual who appears sick with a fever AND who has a cough OR difficulty breathing should first place a mask on themselves,including eye protection, and should wear gloves. The mask should preferably be one that offers protection at an N95 mask level or higher.

2. After protecting themselves with the mask, eye protection, and gloves, providers should place a similar mask on the patient, if it can be tolerated. It is understandable that patients with shortness of breath may not tolerate such a mask, especially if oxygen is being administered or possibly CPAP.

Nebulize through the Boussignac CPA

Yes you can………

Nebulize through the Boussignac CPAP System

Congratulations Carla!

Carla Kelley was honored on April 11th, 2009, as the Faulkner County Veterans of Foreign Wars Paramedic of the Year. Carla was honored for her dedication to EMS, much of it in Faulkner County, her strong skills, and her compassion for her patients. She was a unanimous choice by the Foxtrots.

North Pulaski

I don't know what those crews are up to in North Pulaski, but here is a note and few pics from them.....

Of all the things that are on the blog, the goat did not make it? Not sure how I should take that. He could be one of our most famous future employees William "Billy" A. Goat.

Gratitude from a PT's family

Wife of a patient express her sincere gratitude to Medics Terra McDougald and Adam Weiser. PT's wife said that the CPAP is a wonderful device that helped her husband so much. Got his Pulse Ox saturation from the low 80’s to the high 90’s by the time he got to the hospital. He did not have to be intubated, but is still in ICU Dx with CHF.


She said “I will stand on the curb and clap for MEMS whenever they go by our home!”



Great Job Terra and Adam.

325 (soon to be 425) update

By the way 228 is now at Excellance, we are still working on the cause of the fire.

Tech tips from the shop

We already know that in our profession basic skill save lives, the same rule applies to our units.

I have been meeting with the shop, they have put together a few tips on starting, plugging in the unit etc... They are all basic skills, however we have had some problems with the mastering of these basic skills.

Did you know that not waiting on the glow plugs to heat up before starting the unit can cause damage to the glow plugs as well as the unit? The result is poor or no starting, or poor performance when it does start, not to mention the damage to parts that must be replaced.

Did you know that putting gas in a diesel engine cost an average of $500.00 to fix, assuming you don't ruin the engine?

Employees, please log on to the medic access part of the MEMS web site to view the video.

http://medic.metroems.org

Update on 325

A few pictures on the status of 325 (soon to be 425)

Latisha Johnson

Our own Latisha was honored as one of Arkansas’ Stars of life recently. This is an honor given out by the Arkansas Ambulance Association. She spent the day at the State Capitol interacting with Legislators, and touring the Capitol as well as participating in a luncheon in the Stars honor. Latisha, we are very proud of you !

Cot Inspections

We are in the process of bringing in all the cots in the fleet. We are doing a decontamination as well as inspection/repair as well as replacing any worn cot straps. I am reminding everyone that the chest straps are a requirement on our cots and should be used to restrain your patients.

We are also placing a “Mega Mover” on all cots. Its functions like a draw sheet on steroids. It can hold up to 1500 pounds. It is stored at the foot of the cot under the mattress. We have now placed it on the check off and major sheets.

Auto Vents in

We have received the shipment of the Autovent 3000. This means that all transport vents will be the same. All Paramedics should have received an in service in the last mandatory classes that were held. This is almost exactly like the Autovent that we have had for the last several years. If you need any additional in-service, please see your Supervisor.

A while back we adopted the phonetic alphabet to describe the different positions in the company. Mike=Major, Charlie= Captain, Hotel=Hazmat etc…

I think sometimes the new folks (and some of the old) are having a little trouble getting the concept ;-)

228 catches fire

Not a site you see everyday for sure. The crew of 228 (a newer unit) had just picked up a non-critical PT and were in route to the ER, when they lost power and started seeing smoke. The crew pulled over, evacuated the PT to a safe area. One crewmember went back with a fire extinguisher and was able to get to some of the flame, however the fire appeared to be in the wall of the unit, so he was unable to get to the true source of the fire.
I don’t feel the unit will be a total loss, but it does have heavy wire and smoke damage. We can replace metal, but not people. I am very grateful to the crew for their quick thinking and actions

A little trivia for ya....

This is Hunter Gray. He "invented" the stick man and the way we stripe out trucks. He also designed our first MEMS Alert campaign .

History of the Star of Life

Did you know??



The blue Star of Life was designed by Leo R. Schwartz, Chief of the EMS Branch, NHTSA. It was officially registered February 1, 1977. Just as pharmacists have the mortar and pestle and doctors have the caduceus, EMTs have a symbol. Each of the bars or six “points” of the blue “Star of Life” represents the six-system function of the EMS: detection, reporting, response, on scene care, care in transit, and transfer to definitive care. The staff on the star represents Medicine and Healing.

Slain EMS worker remembered

The EMT volunteer murdered Friday night in Cape Vincent had a promising career in emergency medical work cut short.

Mark B. Davis, 25, was killed by a gunshot from a high powered rifle while responding to a call late Friday evening.

Mr. Davis was involved in multiple emergency agencies, was enrolled in a paramedic program at JCC and worked full time at Watertown's Guilfoyle Ambulance, says the county's Fire and Emergency Services Director Glenn Morrison.

"He had an amazing passion for it," Morrison said.

Davis joined the Cape Vincent Fire Department in late 2006. He was both a volunteer and paid driver for Thousand Islands Rescue. "This was all he knew at this point," Morrison said. "He gave the ultimate sacrifice."

He said Davis' death is being treated as a "line of duty death," meaning funeral and survivor benefits being made available to Davis' family. It also means a formal honor guard funeral, to be held in Cape Vincent.

The designation of a "line of duty death" requires extensive paperwork which has already begun, Morrison said.

Davis moved to Cape Vincent about 2004 from Florida.

He is survived by his mother, a brother, a sister and other relatives.

murder of an EMS volunteer

Cape Vincent man is being held without bail after being arraigned for the
alleged murder of an EMS volunteer who was responding to his residence.

Christopher G. Burke, 25, was arraigned in Cape Vincent Court on 2nd degree
murder and weapons charges late Saturday morning.

State Police investigators say Burke shot and killed Cape Vincent EMS
volunteer Mark Davis at his 114 South Esseltyne residence late Friday
evening.

Davis and other EMS personnel had been summoned to Burke's residence by a
911 call, authorities say. Police would not reveal the nature of the medical
emergency.

While the EMS workers were tending to Burke, he became agitated, went into
another room and retrieved a high powered rifle. While talking to the EMS
workers, Burke had indicated he had weapons in the home, police said.

"And they heard the action of a weapon being activated. At that point the
EMTs attempted to retreat from the residence," said State Police BCI captain
Mark Lincoln.

As the EMTs retreated, Burke allegedly fired two rounds, one of them hitting
Davis and killing him.

Burke then ran from the home and was tackled and held down by another EMT.
Clayton Police officer Robin Pearce took him into custody with help from
Alexandria Bay Police officer Jerry Delosh.

EMTs at the scene attempted life-saving efforts on Davis and continued
during the ambulance transport to Samaritan Medical Center in Watertown,
where he was pronounced dead.

Capt. Lincoln declined to say whether drugs or alcohol may have been a
factor in the fatal incident.

25th Anniversary patch

In Celebration of MEMS 25th Anniversary, we have authorized the wearing of the MEMS 25th Anniversary patch. You are authorized to have this patch on your polo’s, or flying cross shirts in place of our regular patch for 2009.

Since this is an optional patch, and not required so a word of caution, this is only for 2009 so only order what you think you will wear for 09, 2010 we will move back to our traditional patch.

Stations being re-keyed

It’s time to re-key all of the MEMS sub-stations.

We started this week and hope to be concluded by the end of the January.

Now, some things you NEED TO KNOW.

The new keys are going to be color coded: Pink and Blue

Pink station keys will be on each MEMS unit key ring. (The color will insure that they stay on the key ring.)

Blue station keys can be issued to an employee who wants one. Note: employees or their family members ARE NOT authorized to duplicate or have a station key unless it has been issued by MEMS.

MEMS Policy on station keys is: You can be issued a station master key only. You CAN NOT take it upon yourself to have a station master key made. If you have MEMS station key made without MEMS authorization, you will be subject to disciplinary action up to and including termination. (ouch!!) In other words, don’t duplicate key…… J

You can see Louis or one of the supervisors in Conway to have a station key issued. There is a $50.00 fee/fine for the key, if it is lost and/or not returned. If your issued a key, you assume all responsibility until it is returned. If the key breaks or doesn’t work properly, just bring it in and we’ll swap it w/o worries……..

UAMS is MOVING!

The entire hospital will begin moving all patients, equipment and supplies on Saturday, January 17, 2009.

Beginning Sunday, January 18, 2009 at 0800 the old ER will be closed and the new ER will be accepting patients. The new ER entrance is located off of Shuffield Dr. across from LRVA ER. Follow signs for ambulance parking and entrance.

The new Helipad, located on top of new hospital, will be completely operational beginning Sunday, January 18, 2009 at 0800.

Update on 232 (132)

The new 232 is beginning it transformation. Should be home near the end of February.

MEMS to be mentioned in new book

Lamar Pickens, MEMS patient suffered 3 gun shot wounds to his body after a man asked to use the phone in his business then turned and shot him. Mr. Pickens owns Lamar’s Auto Air and is very happy to be alive today. He attributes his life to Medics Jalana Braqnham and Allen Lawrence, but knows for certain that he was ultimately in God’s hands. Interesting, Mr. Pickens said, “the shooter pointed that gun at my head and I told him In the name of Jesus, don’t kill me…..” Strangely, the gun misfired and he only suffered powder burns to his face and “3-days of sulfur” in his mustache! He did take one bullet to the abdomen, one to his Left femur and one to his Right femur.

His book is called “Psalm 91:1”. He wants to name Jalana and Allen specifically in his book. Also, present on scene was Terry Henson, who he said scooped him up and carried him to the ambulance by herself!!!

I thought this was an interesting note. He is in the process of getting his book published.

MANDATORY Paramedic Training

In January MEMS will carry 2 different brands of cardiac monitors, the LP 12 and Philips MRx. All paramedics are expected to attend one of these MANDATORY classes on the use of the Philips monitor. There are several dates to chose from but each class is limited in size.
Reserve your space early.

Monday, January 5th 1200-1500
Monday, January 5th 1700-2000
Tuesday, January 6th 0800-1100
Tuesday, January 6th 1700-2000
Wednesday, January 7th 0800-1100
Wednesday, January 7th 1200-1500
Thursday, January 8th 0800-1100
Thursday, January 8th 1700-2000
Friday, January 9th 0800-1100
Friday, January 9th 1200-1500
Saturday, January 10th 0800-1100
Saturday, January 10th 1200-1500
Monday, January 12th 1200-1500
Monday, January 12th 1700-2000
Tuesday, January 13th 0800-1100
Tuesday, January 13th, 1700-2000
Wednesday, January 14th 0800-1100
Wednesday, January 14th 1200-1500

We will also cover:

CPAP
Autovent A-3000 ventilators
disposable ventilators
Taser probe removal

Location: Training Building

You must submit registration form to the Training Department no
later than 3 days prior to class.
Space is limited so late submissions are subject to denial.

MEMS turns 25 this year

We are in the process of gathering old newspaper articles, pictures, videos, memorabilia etc...about MEMS for our 25th year celebration. If you have anything that we can scan, copy or have please contact Greg Thompson.

David turner has been working feverishly on writing down our history, already it is a great read. The actual Birthday is May 25th 2009, we hope to put out a multi media project to commemorate this day.

Your help is greatly appreciated.

GT

gthompson@metroems.com

Medics Caught on Tape Allegedly Decided Disabled Man Not Worth Saving

What an incredibly sad and tragic story. May we never allow our humanity and the reason we started doing this work to be lost
GT

Two EMT workers in Britain were arrested after they were heard allegedly discussing whether they should bother to resuscitate a disabled man who had collapsed at home and subsequently died.

Barry Baker, 59, who lived alone, dialed 911 saying that he thought he was having a heart attack. An ambulance was sent to his house while a controller kept him talking on the line.

By the time the ambulance arrived at the house in Patcham, Brighton, Baker had collapsed, but the telephone line was still open and was being recorded.

It is alleged that staff in the control center heard the two medics making disparaging comments about the state of the house.

A police source, who asked not to be named, said that the medics were then heard discussing Baker and saying “words to the effect that he was not worth saving."

The source said that the two men were allegedly first heard commenting on the untidy state of the house and then saying that it was not worth bothering to resuscitate Baker.

They are said to have discussed what to tell ambulance control and decided to say that Baker was already dead when they got there.

“Obviously the crew did not realize that the phone was still connected and, of course, the 999 call was recorded on tape,” the source said.

Sussex Police confirmed that two men had been arrested and that a full-scale investigation into the incident was being carried out by the major crime team.

Baker, who used sticks to help to him walk after undergoing hip replacement surgery, made the emergency call to the South East Coast Ambulance Service headquarters in Lewes in the early hours of Nov. 29.

Hi from Jay and Susan

Hey gang!

Just a quick note and some pictures. Here are some pictures of the third snow we have had this December. This is about 5" and the largest to date. This fell Friday night. Saturday was pretty pleasant, with the temperatures in the upper 20's. Sunday and Monday never reached double digits! Damn cold !! Tuesday it is back to the upper 20's with a chance for more snow this afternoon and evening.

We hope that everyone is happy and healthy and prepared for a wonderful holiday season. My dad and sister are coming out the week after Christmas and we are looking forward to seeing them. We are always ready for other visitors to come say howdy !!! and we are only an hour from one of the ski resorts!

Happy Holidays to you all

We miss you!

Link to pictures

Jay , Susan, Logna, and Dylan Stype

Christmas Party

Remember the MEMS Christmas party and awards banquet this Friday Night. This is open to MEMS Employees and their mates. This year we will be having it at the Holiday Inn Airport on December 5 2008.

Happy hour is from 18:00 – 19:00 with dinner and awards starting at 19:00.

The Husqvarna (Husky) Makes it First Event

Some of you have seen the new Husqvarna that was purchased to take the place of the old “Mac Cart”. It was purchased with a grant from Fire House Subs for a cost of @ $17,000.

Friday at the Miracle on Markham the Husky did it’s job without a hitch.

The Gator will be moved to Conway where it will be stored in ready to respond mode. For large events such as the State Fair, Razorback games etc. you will probably see both in use. We are currently looking at what we will do with the old MAC Cart.






I wonder if it is what brought us luck???

Biggest Turkey Fryer in Town!

This monster is owned by Clay Brannon


Another Thanksgiving has come and gone. I want to say thank you to the Lee family for their work in feeding all the metro crews. David came in on his day off, and brought along his wife, father and his girlfriend to do the cooking for everyone on duty.

In Conway, Major Ekenseair started cooking the day before and handed the final preparations off to Major Tabor who along with the Faulkner County crews on duty put together an excellent meal.

Buying the food, preparing the meal, getting the crews by takes a lot of coordination and effort to pull off. I am grateful for everyone who does it with such a sense of servant hood and graciousness.
Thank You!

More on 228

Getting closer

update on 128

We don't often show the status of our remounts. This is the phase that 128 (soon to be 228) is currently in. We don't have a firm return date yet, but believe it will be before 2009.

New Safety Vest

As of November 24, 2008 Federal law requires that a safety vest be worn by, “All response and support activities that occur on the roadways that facilitate the movement of traffic”.

Simply said if you are on a street of any kind Federal Law says you must be wearing your safety vest, day or night.

We are issuing each employee his or her own personal safety vest, however the order is on back order. To meet the deadline, we are placing two vests in each unit satchel. Additional vest can be acquired for any third riders by going through the normal inventory process (i.e. the cage)

When the bulk order comes in you will be issued your personal vest. See Policy #518 for complete details.

Welcome Tim

You may have seen a new guy around the shop. Tim Bissell recently joined Bobo and Kevin. Tim comes to us after working for a Ford dealership as well as owning his own shop for a few years. When you get a chance stop by and say hi.

Congratulations Tate Hamm

Tate Hamm was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant this week. With this new rank he will also be taking over the bike team form Stan Neal who has stepped down for personal reasons. When you see Tate congratulate him.

Red Cross Hero Awards

On Wednesday of this week Corey Burns, Fred Sterling and Alan Falcone were honored at the annual Red Cross Hero Banquet. They received this honor for the successful resuscitation of 18-month-old Caleb Gore who wandered into a pond and was found code blue. They all will be the first to say that they were just doing their job, and while that is true to some extent, it is good that some of our peers were honored for a job well done. Caleb was also at the event and was carried by Fred to the stage as they received their award. Congratulations!

Christmas party

It is that time for the annual MEMS Christmas party and awards banquet. This is open to MEMS Employees and their mates. This year we will be having it at the Holiday Inn Airport on December 5 2008.
Happy hour is from 18:00 – 19:00 with dinner and awards starting at 19:00.

Annual Awards

It is that time of year to make nominations for Paramedic, EMT, Rookie, Employee and, PRN of the Year. This year the rules are:

Any employee may be nominated for the appropriate category
Attention should be paid to employees that have gone “above and beyond” during the year
Nominee must be in good standing
Medic is defined as Paramedic
EMT is defined as EMT
Employee is defined as any full time employee who does not work as an EMT or Paramedic. (Salary/management staff are not eligible)
Rookie is defined as a Paramedic or EMT hired between October 1 2007 and October 01 2008. (See list)
Dispatcher is defined as any PRN or fulltime dispatcher.
PRN is defined as any EMT or Paramedic that has met the minimum number of hours (260 per year) to be compliant with our PRN policy. (See list)
Nominations will be taken from all staff with final selection from the top three made by management.

Deadline is Noon November 7 2008

ONE nomination vote per employee PLEASE


Ballots available at:
Station one supply room, or at Conway Central Station.

New Secondary Airway

The health department has mandated that EMS services carry a secondary airway.

We are now introducing this device into our protocol. This device will be the King Airway and will be considered the secondary airway of choice at MEMS. Included in your packet you will find the updated protocols to support these changes, MIF information, as well literature written on the King Airway.

This is mandatory training required for all paramedics that must be completed prior to using this new airway. There is a 6 minute training video available at http://www.medic.metroems.org/ If you are new to the medic site please register and then log on to view the video. Available for check out are DVD / CD from your supervisor or please see the Echo on duty. We will also be placing DVD/CD at each outlying station. Also included in your packet is a 10 question exam that must be completed and turned into the on-duty supervisor, Echo (C. Spychalski or C. Goddard) or Foxtrot in order to receive credit for this training. The deadline to complete and turn in exam is October 31, 2008. The exam must be turned in by this day or you will be ineligible to work until training is complete. You can also fax your completed test to 301-1485.

If you have any questions regarding this new device please contact Captain Janelle Johnson in training 301-1464.

Inventory and North Pulaski

Inventory
Inventory system is up and running. I want to remind you to be sure that you check you satchel at the start and end of your shift, as well as complete a start of shift check sheet. This is mandatory. We have found some mistakes, and after tracing them down discovered they were simply matters of just not checking your equipment. We are also in the process of majoring all the Thomas packs and tagging them. We are still tweaking the system, if you have ideas that make is smother or faster, we are all ears.
We will start remodeling the old supply room the week of September 29th. This new office will house the Staff Captains. Currently they have no “home” and have been working on projects such as inventory, Moving of North Pulaski Station, Health department Inspection etc..

North Pulaski
Speaking of North Pulaski, we have moved the trailer that started out in Sheridan, moved to station one and now resides in North Pulaski. It was moved to the North Pulaski Fire Station behind the current NP Station. We received permission from the Fire Department to share their land. We are in the process of getting a septic tank, porch, under pinning etc.. We do not yet have a move in date.

Returning units

Thursday September 25, 2008 units 522 and 507 will be coming home from Excellance. Unit 128 will be sent for remount. Unit 522 will have a diesel run, on board generator with a roof mount A/C system. This is an experiential system for us. We are trying to find ways to improve fuel efficiency as well as ways to better cool the units, reduce idle time etc.. It will look a little different, but we hope it meets the above needs.

Condition Green

I think that we finally finished up from the hurricane.;-) It seems that getting patients here is a lot easier than getting them home. Thank you to everyone who worked so patiently through out this whole process.

Currently in Condition Yellow

We move to Condition RED Saturday prior to the first plane into Little Rock. Again I remind you condition RED is a mandatory call in (check in for availability) of all off duty crews. This AM we moved back to condition Yellow due to the potential of several weather in Arkansas from Hurricane Gustuv. (Yellow be alert and ready to come in)

WOW!!

This is Tuesday already; I wanted to give you an update on the weekend. We started off Saturday at 10AM at MEMS getting ready to receive patients at noon. The first plane did not come till late that evening which meant a lot of tiring waiting. When they did start coming it got busy. The preliminary totals are.
13 aircraft were received
233 patients were off loaded, triaged and transported to local hospitals

The following is an excerpt from Rex Oxner IC of the event for VA/NDMS

This was a massive operation. Probably larger than anything seen during Katrina/Rita and certainly the largest reception activity ever completed over such a short time.
A simple “Thank You” to all of those who helped to make this operation a success seems inadequate but I hope that it is enough that you know what a great job you all did and how much your dedication meant to the success of this endeavor.

Thank You
Rex

J. Rex Oxner, MHA
Area Emergency Manager
Central Arkansas Veterans Healthcare System

I add my thank you to this staff, I have said of events like this in the past, most days we are called to help people, sometimes we are called to help cities. Until later, Thank you, Thank you.

Greg