western massachusetts

emergency medical services

May 1997, Issue 12

Region I EMS Newsletter

EMS Week * May 18 - 24, 1997

The annual festivities begin again! As EMS Week approaches each County EMS Committee is adding final touches to their upcoming EMS ceremonies. This is the time of year that we gather together to give ourselves the well deserved pat on the back. The regional awards (Save, Recognition and Meritorious) that have been approved over the last year will be presented to each recipient at their County's function. Dates and details are provided below. Come celebrate, and have a good time. Let's take some time and recognize each other and the good work we do.

Franklin County Monday, May 19, 1997 Franklin Medical Center 6pm hors d'oeuvres, 6:45 buffet 7:45 Awards, 8:15 Comedienne Julie Barr All FCEMS personnel welcome RSVP at 773-8557	Hampshire County Thursday, May 22, 1997 6 - 9 pm Smith Vocational School Cafetorium Hors d'oeuvres, No RSVP 7 pm: Save Awards, Unit apprecation awards. Family members are welcome!
Berkshire County Thursday, May 22, 1997 Silver Screen Restaurant 6pm Cocktails, 7pm Dinner Awards to follow D.J. provided All welcome, $15/person RSVP by 5/17 at 499-2528	Hampden County Tuesday, May 20, 1997 6:30 - 9:30 pm Nursing Auditorium, Holyoke Hospital Buffet Dinner: No RSVP Guest Speaker: Robert Hopkins, MS, REMTP

Annual Meeting Highlights

The evening at the Delaney House was a festive one. The food was fabulous. The speaker for the evening was Father William Hamilton, an active member of the regional CISD team. Elections were held: Mary Pope, Vice-President; Daniel Harrington, Clerk; Wes Stevenson, At-Large; Francesca Austin, At-Large; John Hayden, Consumer. Congratulations to all. The Eaton E. Freeman Award was presented to Brian Andrews of Pittsfield. The Freeman Award is given to an individual within emergency medical services whose efforts are directly responsible for benefitting the prehospital community, by providing significant support to other members of the EMS team, and/or acting as a leader in his/her community.

Mr. Andrews has been involved with EMS for over 15 years, since he began working with a local volunteer squad as a first responder. He now holds paramedic certification, and has overseen the growth of County Ambulance from a small BLS service, to a paramedic service supporting Pittsfield and surrounding communities. However, it is his active participation in community and regional EMS issues that prompted his nomination for this award. He serves as president of the Berkshire County EMS Committee, taking a role in EMS activities throughout the county, such as disaster planning and community CPR Classes. He teaches hazardous materials and street survival classes. He also teaches EMT-I classes, and is currently teaching in the Springfield College paramedic program. He serves as medical support to the Pittsfield Police Department Tactical Team. Finally, he is the co-director of the WMEMS CISD team, providing support to local police, fire, ambulance and hospital emergency departments in times of crisis.

Professional Bystander Assistance Information

You may not be aware that WMEMS has laminated cards available for your use to smooth your interactions in the field with well meaning medical professionals who may not understand the guidelines and procedures you must follow. In the late 80s, the WMEMS Physicians' Council decided to provide these wallet cards to ambulance services upon request. They were designed to prevent uncomfortable situations which arise when medical professionals who are not familiar with medical control are at a scene of an emergency. The card may be carried by the EMT to present to the medical professional at the scene who may be interfering with a call. If your service would like to request cards for your EMTs please call our office (586-6065).

Executive Director's Report

EMS 2000 and the Statewide Protocols; will they ever be finished? Funny you should ask. The State Medical Services Committee, at their April meeting, voted to send the statewide protocols to the Emergency Medical Care Advisory Board's Executive Committee for action. After Executive votes on the finished product, it will be distributed to the regions for approval. Once adopted, these protocols can only be changed at the state level. We can request additions or deletions, but the State has to approve them. One final note; OEMS will be contracting with someone to put the protocols into algorithm or decision tree format, so they can be shrunk to pocket size.

EMS 2000, now known as H2307 was heard at the Joint Health Care Committee on Monday, May 6th. Vice Chair Stefanini is very positive about the bill passing. We need you to call and write your senators and representatives. Our goal is to make at least one personal contact with each legislator and we can't do that without your help.

And now for something entirely different, let's go to the Prehospital Care Advisory Board. Chairperson Randy Cushing would like you to know that the PCAB has been reborn and he invites all interested parties to attend meetings. Meetings will be held in all four counties, so if you have meeting space and are interested please call the office. The committee has been restructured so that the membership is open. Current issues on the table are: Semi-Automatic Defibrillation protocol revision and ALS/BLS training issues. This committee needs and wants your participation! The next meeting is Tuesday, May 27th at 4 pm at Cooley Dickinson Hospital. Exact location is not known, please call the office.

Thanks to grant moneys from Governor's Highway Safety Bureau, WMEMS is sponsoring two dispatch programs over the next few months. The first will be another Medical Priority Emergency Medical Dispatch Provider Course scheduled for June 27-29, 1997 in Northampton. August 18 - August 23, 1997 will be a six day combination APCO Instructor Course. This course will train qualified individuals to teach APCO's Basic Telecommunicator Course and APCO's Emergency Medical Dispatch Provider Course. Although much of our region utilizing EMD is using the Medical Priority System, a number of agencies have been unable to upgrade to EMD because of training and travel reimbursement costs associated with attending a MPC EMD program. WMEMS is offering the APCO train the trainer program to enable those agencies to train one of their own as an instructor and thereby provide EMD training inhouse. Please note, although similar systems, MPC and APCO do not accept the other's certification. So each dispatch system needs to choose a program and all calltakers/dispatchers must be trained in that system. Dispatch agencies and ambulance services will receive a mailing on both of these courses in the very near future.

The Semi-Automatic Defibrillation Challenge Sessions have been scheduled for the year. 1997 Defib Quarterly Challenge Sessions all located at Cooley Dickinson Hospital, Northampton: Wed, May 14th, 4p; Mon, Aug 18th, 4p; Fri, Nov 21st, 1pm. Preregistration is necessary. Challenge applications must be submitted two weeks prior to challenge date. Call WMEMS 413-586-6065. Paramedic Optional Skills WMEMS credentials MA EMT-Ps in optional skills which consist of intraosseous infusion, needle cricothyroidotomy, needle chest decompression. Challenge/Recertification quarterly sessions are scheduled as follows: Wed, May 14th, 4p; Mon, Aug 18th, 4p; Fri, Nov 21st, 1pm. To challenge the WMEMS Paramedic Optional Skills credential call the office to obtain a challenge application which must be submitted two weeks prior to the challenge date. Paramedic Optional Skills Course (11 hours EMT-P con-ed credit): The annual course will be held Tuesday, Nov 18, 9a-5p and Friday, Nov 21, 9a-1p. Preregistration is required.

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