Amb District Letters Page 2

Ambulance District Letters of Support - Page 2

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To the Editor,

Many of you may have read about the high-speed car accident that occurred on June 12 just outside of Red Lodge. Unfortunately, this type of life-threatening trauma is not rare around Red Lodge. This is the second time in four weeks that I have been on call when a trauma of this severity has occurred.

I would like to thank my physician colleagues who responded to the hospital on their day off to assist with patient care as well as the cadre of wonderful volunteer EMTs and firefighters who worked at the scene. Importantly, I would like to recognize the role that our paramedics played that day. In this particular situation we were dealing with three elderly, critically injured patients. It is because of our paramedics’ skill level, timely response and astute clinical decision-making that all three patients survived. There is no doubt in my mind that the outcome would have been very different if we did not have these paramedics.
At any given time Beartooth Hospital is only staffed with one doctor and two nurses. In larger communities, a paramedic’s job generally ends at the hospital door where they are met by two or three doctors and a large nursing staff. Here in Red Lodge, our paramedics become an extension of the ER staff when they arrive at the hospital, and play an extremely valuable role in helping us to stabilize patients.

This is obviously a critical time for our ambulance service given the upcoming ballot initiative. I think it can be hard for people who don’t work at the hospital or with the ambulance service to understand the difference between a basic EMT and a paramedic and the type of care each is capable of providing. This is a very concrete example of a situation where having personnel available with that higher skill level working along side our EMTs literally made the difference between life and death. I feel so fortunate to have them available. Losing our paramedics would mean a dramatic loss in the level of medical service in this community. It is important for Carbon County residents to understand this when it comes time to vote for the ambulance district.

Sincerely,

Deirdre McNamer, M.D.
Red Lodge

To the Editor,

Every year, the Red Lodge City Council faces a very tight general fund budget. Over two years ago, the council recognized that the city had significantly upgraded its ambulance service with more paid professional staff, more training for volunteers, and better equipment. This higher level of service required more funding from the city’s general fund. The council also recognized that many of the service calls are for outside the city limits and county residents don’t contribute to the availability of this service.

Currently, the ambulance service is staffed 24/7 with Advanced Life Support (ALS) paramedics plus volunteers. Our ALS paramedics perform advanced level assessments when arriving on the scene, are trained for advance pediatric care, can administer pain medications, and can perform life saving cardiac procedures. Because of our well-trained staff and motivated volunteers, lives have been saved in Red Lodge and the surrounding areas of Carbon County.
On June 9, 2009, the Red Lodge City Council approved Resolution No. 3285 on a 6-0 vote. The resolution creates an ambulance district by virtue of an interlocal agreement between Carbon County, Red Lodge Fire District #7, and the City of Red Lodge. Nine months later on March 15, 2010 the County Commissioners voted to have a mail ballot after receiving enough petition signatures.

Now the choice is yours. Do you want to continue to receive our quality level of ambulance service and, if so, are you willing to pay an annual $69 assessment per residential lot that contains a dwelling unit and per developed commercial property?
This spring the City Council developed its preliminary budgets and cut all departments, but, as expected, has significantly cut the ambulance department. Without the passing of the Ambulance District, the following reductions in levels of service will occur:

•Advance Life Support paramedics will not be available 24/7.
•The ambulance response times will be significantly increased.
•The training time for volunteers will be decreased and the numbers of volunteers may be reduced.
•There is a potential loss of ability to staff a second ambulance.
•Response priority will be given to incidents within the city limits of Red Lodge.

Members of the Red Lodge City Council and Mayor encourage you to contact us with questions, do some research, and get the facts straight. Furthermore, we strongly encourage a “yes” vote as we feel it is in the best interest of both city and county residents to maintain our quick-responding and professionally-staffed ambulance service.
Sincerely,

Red Lodge City Council members- Aaron Kampfe, Wanda Kennicott, Glory Mahan, Polly Richter, and Maryvette Labrie
Red Lodge Mayor- Brian Roat

To the Editor,

The difference minutes make can be life giving or life ending. This difference is why our family strongly supports the Red Lodge/Roberts Ambulance District which is up for vote. Here is our story.

While sitting with her classmates at 6:30 a.m. in the driver’s education class two years ago, our fifteen year old daughter suffered cardiac arrest. Within minutes of the subsequent 911 call, Red Lodge EMT’s were restarting her heart with their auto external defibrillator on the floor of the Civic Center classroom. The EMTs literally brought her back to life and took her in their ambulance to the Beartooth Hospital where she was further stabilized before being flown to St. Vincent’s Hospital. From there, within a matter of hours, she was on a trauma flight to The Children’s Hospital in Denver. She returned home, fully recovered, within the month. She now leads the life of a vivacious energetic teenager.

Both the medical staff at St. Vincent’s and at The Children’s Hospital attributed this remarkable result to the quick, highly skillful efforts of the first responders in Red Lodge. It is with heartfelt, grateful praise of the services they provide that we will cast our votes in favor of the Red Lodge/Roberts Ambulance District.
Sincerely,

Mark and Leanne
Mullaney
Red Lodge

To the Editor,

This week a ballot will be delivered to your mailbox that has significant potential to affect the quality of life for you, your friend, and your family for the foreseeable future.

All of the physicians from Mountain View Clinic and Red Lodge Clinic fully support the formation of the ambulance district. This would maintain Advanced Life Support Critical Care Paramedics. This allows interventions to occur before arrival at the hospital, which prevents pain and save lives. Often, this holds the key to successful resuscitation in trauma, illness, and cardiac arrest. Paid staff provides more timely response and consistency because they are immediately available.
Basic Life Support volunteers remain crucial in patient care, but are unable to begin resuscitation with IV’s, medications, and advanced airway interventions, nor are they able to alleviate pain with medications. Maintenance, training, and recruitment of volunteers are crucial functions of the paid paramedic staff. Continuing a service with one paramedic is unrealistic due to the demands placed on our paramedics. Beside their hours and call, they still carry pagers to respond when needed. This obviously is a non-maintainable situation.

The high level of care our medical community seeks to provide hinges upon this initiative. Paramedics are crucial for being able to transfer sick and injured patients to Billings who require medications, IV’s and other interventions. Without them there would be much higher use of HELP flight increasing costs and risks to patients. When they are unavailable, either nurses who are in short supply or paramedics from Billings would have to be utilized, markedly increasing time to a higher level of care. Recently, all of our paramedics passed tests for Critical Care status, which requires a higher level of training and is very difficult.

We understand that a $69 annual fee per household poses a challenge for some, especially in today’s economy. We also believe that objective oversight will be in place through a board to ensure an efficient ambulance department, which will be well run, and will not waste public funds. If you can imagine yourself or a loved one severely injured or ill, would you not feel it worth $69 to have the highest level of care promptly available? If this initiative fails, levels of care will certainly decrease, and it will be very hard or impossible to rebuild this even if funding became available in the future. As a medical staff, we urge you to vote yes to this initiative.

Sincerely,

Bill George, M.D.
Brad Fouts, M.D.
Deirdre McNamer, M.D.
Billy Oley, M.D.
Sarah Stewart, M.D.

To the Editor,

We as emergency nurses appeal to you to vote FOR the formation of the Red Lodge/Roberts Ambulance District.
As nurses trained in trauma and critical care, we all know the consequences patients face when treatment is delayed. The time that is saved in the pre hospital setting by a paramedic, along with a quality ambulance service, that has first-line medications, pain medications, a defibrillator and other critical treatments, is time saved in the emergency room. These emergency providers can respond immediately.

We, the undersigned are voting YES for the formation of the Red Lodge/Roberts Ambulance District and are in favor of maintaining the current high level of pre hospital emergency response. Please vote with us to support our dedicated volunteers and paid paramedics by voting Yes.

Sincerely,

Chris Benton RN Red Lodge; Teresa Hauge RN Red Lodge; Geri Zagoric RN Red Lodge; Mary Orler RN Red Lodge; Barb Downing RN Bear Creek Sue King RN Roberts; Sherry Knowlton RN Bear Creek; Emily Russell RN Red Lodge; Rick Torbert RN, Fromberg; Heidi Kebble RN Red Lodge; Rose Filkin RN Red Lodge; Nell Delao LPN Red Lodge; Julia Dukart RN Red Lodge; Ann Graham LPN Red Lodge

“Within minutes of the subsequent 911 call, Red Lodge EMT’s were restarting her heart with their auto external defibrillator on the floor of the Civic Center classroom”

Mark and Leanne Mullaney

Red Lodge

“The time that is saved in the pre hospital setting by a paramedic, along with a quality ambulance service, that has first-line medications, pain medications, a defibrillator and other critical treatments, is time saved in the emergency room”

Nursing Staff

Beartooth Hospital

Red Lodge

“We strongly encourage a “yes” vote as we feel it is in the best interest of both city and county residents to maintain our quick-responding and professionally-staffed ambulance service”

Red Lodge Mayor and City Council Members

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