EMS providers are ‘Everyday Heroes’
To the editor:
Each year we celebrate “Emergency Medical Services Week” which this year falls from May 15-21 of 2011.
This year’s theme “Everyday Heroes”, is well deserving to the men and women who generously give of their time and efforts to provide the best in pre-hospital care throughout Aroostook County.
Rural EMS presents great challenges that are not seen in other parts of the state.
Air ambulance services are vital to coordinate services that are only available in Bangor or Portland, and we in Aroostook are home to over 60 percent of the state’s resources in providing Critical Care Air Transport.
In addition, our ground service crews are for the most part, staffed by volunteers and many who maintain full-time jobs in other private sector areas. The annual training that is needed amounts to a considerable amount of dedication from the 242 licensed providers that we are proud to have among our ranks.
This year Pat Long EMT Paramedic and Service Director for Ashland Ambulance is to be recognized for his contributions to the EMS system at the local, regional and statewide levels. Pat has demonstrated involvement in many EMS activities, and will be awarded the 2011 Maine EMS Merit award by Gov. Paul LePage, in a Blaine House ceremony to be held on Wednesday, May 18th in Augusta.
In closing, let us give thanks to the men and women who have sought to make a difference for their communities. Our system has increasingly continued to develop, thanks to the dedication of the following EMS transporting services and its members. They include: Ambulance Service Inc., Ashland Ambulance Service, Caribou Fire & Ambulance Dept., Crown Ambulance, Downeast EMS, Houlton Ambulance Service, Island Falls Ambulance, Madawaska Ambulance, Patten Ambulance and Van Buren Ambulance.
Steven D. Corbin,
coordinator
Aroostook Region 5 EMS
