Membership
dollars benefit patients in unexpected ways
 |
| Paramedic
student Dan Meyer (left) and paramedic Jim Robinson, of Redmond
Fire & Rescue inspect the new defibrillators that were funded
in part by membership dollars. |
Funds
from membership fees help ground and air programs gain lifesaving skills
and equipment
Most
people already know the perks of membership with Air Life or any of
our FireMed affiliates - protection from out-of-pocket costs for emergency
transport is a pretty good deal. But most people aren't aware of the
flurry of fringe benefits those membership dollars create behind the
scenes - benefits you may very well reap in the future.
Air
Life ground affiliate Redmond Fire & Rescue recently put membership
revenue to good use by purchasing new defibrillators for emergency
response vehicles. The defibrillators allow paramedics to shock a
heart back to a regular rhythm. The monitors also allow paramedics
to see a patient's heart rhythm and obtain 12 lead cardiac tracings,
oxygen levels, blood pressure and other details. By combining $20,000
in membership revenue with $76,000 from the City of Redmond and a
$3,000 grant from Air Life, Redmond Fire & Rescue has made sure patients
in their service area have access to the best lifesaving equipment
available.
"We're
now able to provide a higher level of care to our patients," explained
Division Chief Dave Pickhardt. "These defibrillators are the most
technologically advanced systems for pre-hospital care. They're the
same as what's used on the Air Life aircraft."
The
new systems are particularly critical when Redmond crews respond to
rural areas and every second is critical. "With this equipment, we
can send a fax of the patient's vitals from a ranch in Powell Butte
to the ER," he added.
On
the Air Life end of the spectrum, membership dollars have played an
integral role in operations for more than 19 years. Most recently,
membership revenue helped fund the SimMan® training aid to allow the
clinical team to practice lifesaving trauma skills ranging from intubation
to inserting a chest tube.
"With
any skill, the more you practice, the more it becomes routine," explained
Michele Moore, Air Life's lead flight respiratory therapist. "This
piece of equipment will make sure the flight team's skills are as
sharp as they can possibly be so they're ready to deal with every
emergency and trauma scenario imaginable."
Though
Air Life manages the membership programs for 11 ground EMS agencies,
each agency decides how to use membership revenue. Typically, however,
those funds are earmarked for training and equipment - something Air
Life Membership Coordinator Wanda Grindstaff says is a benefit for
members.
"When
people write that check for their family membership, they don't usually
realize that money is helping to pay for equipment that might save
someone's life," she explained. "That $45 or $80 check could make
all the difference for someone's mother, father or child."
Return
to Spring 2004 Air Currents Directory
