Winter 2021-2022| Issue 4 |
|
Are you an Amazon shopper?
Please support the
Wyoming Emergency Medical Services Foundation
Choose Wyoming Emergency Medical Foundation as your preferred nonprofit. Thanks!
|
|
Welcome Aaron Koehler
Manager, Wyoming Office of Emergency Medical Services
|
|
I was born and raised in Highlands Ranch, a suburb just south of Denver. After high school, I enlisted in the Navy as a Hospital Corpsman. For the most part, Corpsmen work as the "jack of all trades, master of none" in the medical field. I was fortunate enough to obtain two specialties: combat medicine and pharmacy. My first duty station was at the Naval Health Clinic at the Marine Corps Air Station (MCAS) Cherry Point, in Havelock, NC. There I became the first enlisted military member to manage the clinic's pharmaceutical supply budget, worth more than $6.8 million. Also while I was stationed at Cherry Point, I became Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS) certified.
After two and a half years at MCAS Cherry Point, I requested to terminate my shore duty early and received orders to the USS Green Bay (LPD-20) which was home-ported out of San Diego. However, two weeks after I arrived at the ship, we shifted our homeport to Sasebo, Japan where I spent the next year and a half floating around the Pacific. While onboard, I independently operated the ship's pharmacy without pharmacist supervision, assisted in minor surgeries, managed the acute care clinic, and became the head flight deck Corpsman. As the head flight deck Corpsman, I was tasked with the overall safety of the flight deck, the first medical responder to emergencies, and the triaging officer for all oncoming casualties.
I was honorably discharged after five years in the Navy and decided to pursue my education at my dream school, the University of Wyoming. I obtained my master's degree in Kinesiology and Health Promotion in May of 2021. Since moving to Wyoming, I have really come to enjoy the lifestyle, views, and solitude that only the Cowboy State can provide. In my spare time, I love to hike, fish, camp, and hunt. In fact, I recently harvested my first antelope! I am also currently a volunteer firefighter/EMT with Albany County Fire District #1 Central, in Laramie.
I look forward to being involved with WYEMSA. Please do not hesitate to reach out if there is anything I can do for the association.
Very Respectfully,
Aaron Koehler, MS, ACLS
Manager
Office of EMS
Public Health Division
Wyoming Department of Health
122 West 25th Street, Suite 102E
Cheyenne, WY 82002
|
|
Scott Logan takes on new role at Wyoming Office of Emergency Medical Services
|
|
Scott Logan is the newly promoted EMS Supervisor for the Wyoming Office of EMS. He has served the OEMS for the past eight years as the EMS Licensing and Education Coordinator. Scott is currently a paramedic and works part-time in Nebraska and Colorado.
As the Licensing and Education Coordinator Scott has been responsible for developing and implementing the Online Licensure System (OWLS) and maintaining the initial education system throughout the state. In his new role he will take on management of the EMS section of the OEMS to include licensing, education, compliance, and data management. Additionally, Scott will management the Wyoming EMS for Children Program.
Scott is looking forward to continuing to serve the EMS providers and services in our state and grow the relationship of these dedicated individuals and the state EMS Office.
|
|
WYEMSA to host legislative lunch |
|
Wyoming EMS service directors and EMTs were introduced to the 2020 House of Representatives by Representative Jim Roscoe, House District 22 which encompasses Lincoln, Sublette, and Teton counties. |
|
March 2, 2022
11:00 - 1:30
|
WYEMSA will host a lunch for Wyoming legislators in room W53 - W54 in the basement of the Capitol Complex. All WYEMSA members are invited to attend, speak with senators and representatives, and share their stories and priorities for improving EMS in Wyoming.
Find your senators and representatives HERE.
A Capitol Complex map can be found HERE. The lunch will be held in the Capitol Extension (basement, last page of the link).
|
|
|
Joint Appropriation Committee recommendations for ARPA funds
The Joint Appropriations Committee (JAC) will present their American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding based on the Goal Areas identified by Governor Gordon's Strike Team to the 2022 legislature.
Ten goals were identified. Goal five is designated to Healthcare and Human Service Solutions, three of which are EMS projects. Below are the recommendations for the EMS projects which total $10,084,000.
EMS Dispatch Certification
Wyoming lacks a standard medical response system within the 9-1-1 dispatch centers, leading to a lack of medical guidance occurring at the time of the emergency call. This proposal asks for a one-time investment of start-up costs for purchase of the Emergency Medical Dispatch (EMD) curriculum, staff training, and recertification to bring all 9-1-1 response centers up to the same standard of care delivery across Wyoming; $84,000.
EMS Stabilization Fund
Due to the pandemic many ambulance services are at risk of shutting down in Wyoming. These emergency services are vital to ensure a suitable coverage area, especially in rural Wyoming. This proposal looks to provide temporary sustainable funding while the task force works on seeking more solid funding options; approved $5,000,000.
EMS Regionalization Pilot
Currently, emergency medical services continue to rise in cost without a sustainable funding source. This is placing a significant financial burden on local and county entities. The regional pilot project will allow regions to convene and develop local solutions for regional pilots. The goal is to pilot programs that decrease costs and increase access to emergency services; $5,000,000 (requires a 1:1 match).
|
|
Wyoming Helmsley First Responder AED Project update |
|
Greybull police officer deploys AED, saves a life |
|
Above: Greybull Police Officer Drew Patrick.
Below: Nicholas Murdoch, who's life was saved by Officer Patrick using a LIFEPAK CR2 AED granted to the State of Wyoming by the Helmsley Charitable Trust.
|
|
Officer Drew Patrick with the Greybull Police Department responded to a call of an unresponsive man in his 20's. When Officer Patrick arrived, CPR was being performed. He connected the LIFEPAK CR2 AED furnished by the Helmsley Charitable Trust and was prompted to shock the patient, Nicky Murdoch. Officer Patrick continued CPR and within a few minutes Nicky became responsive. He was flown to Billings Clinic and has since returned to Greybull.
Nicholas "Nicky", former EMT and volunteer fire fighter says "I was life flighted to Billings Clinic three days previous for Diabetic Ketone Acidosis. When I left Greybull on the helicopter my blood sugar was at 1608. When I was in the ER that night I was shocked 3 times with the hospital's AED due to an abnormal heart beat caused from the extremely high blood sugar. When I woke up I was in the ICU. From there I was released with everything looking normal. I was staying with my mom for the night just so she could keep an eye on me, when she took me to my house to grab a few things for the night's stay. Next thing I knew I woke up with a lot of strange faces around me. My brother was on scene within minutes, and he being a previous AEMT, knew what to do on his dead, or dying brother. They [Greybull police department] then hooked up the AED and administered two shocks to me, where I shot up instantly and asked what was going on. Without an AED, and the help of my brother and the Greybull police department, I would have died waiting for 20 plus minutes for the ambulance to arrive on scene. My dad was the Fire Chief in Greybull before his passing in 2017 from a pulmonary embolism, and always fought hard to get the AEDs in the police cars, for the simple reason the police almost always first on scene. In a way, I was saved by my dad being an advocate for the police department and local EMTs. Since the use of the AED I have undergone heart surgery as well as having a defibrillator put into my chest, in order to prevent this episode from happening again."
|
|
The Wyoming Office of Emergency Medical Services received a $4.2M grant from Helmsley Charitable Trust to, among other projects, equip all Wyoming law enforcement vehicles with state-of-art automatic external defibrillators (AEDs). Law enforcement agencies include city police departments, county sheriffs' offices, US marshals' offices, university and college campus police, Wyoming Highway Patrol, Game and Fish wardens, and State Parks. |
|
WYEMSA
Corporate Sponsors!
|
|
Our corporate sponsors contribute financially to the Wyoming Emergency Medical Services Association to support our mission, vision, and goals. |
|
Member Benefit Highlights |
|
PLEASE contact these companies. They are supporting WYEMSA members with discounts and group pricing. Get deals and show your appreciation! |
|
Members of the WYEMSA are eligible for special discounts from Aflac. For questions, information, or how to sign-up, contact:
Denise Roller
701-426-3520
|
|
Members of WYEMSA, both as professionals and as individuals, automatically receive discounted prices through the Savvik Buying Group. Contact:
1-888-603-4426 or info@savvik.org . See their list of vendor partners at www.savvik.com
|
|
Family Heritage Plans Cover:
● Cancer (affects 3 out of 4 families, 1 out of 3 adults)
● Heart Attack and Stroke (every 40 seconds someone in the US will suffer a heart
attack or stroke)
● Accidents and Injuries (90% of accidents happen off the job)
● Intensive Care Unit (ICU) Hospitalization
|
|
The Wyoming Emergency Services Foundation, sister organization of the WY EMS Association, is a charitable organization designated as a 50(c)3 by the IRS. Donations made to the Foundation may be tax exempt. Contact wyemsa.info@gmail.com for more information. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
