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Recognizing the sobering reality that many Minnesota ambulance services are struggling to respond to emergency calls, even while the demand for emergency medical services (EMS) is increasing, Tom Vanderwal is taking action. Vanderwal is the program director of the Greater NorthWest EMS and served on Minnesota’s Rural Health Advisory Committee for many years as its “volunteer member of a rural ambulance service” representative. Vanderwal believes that the EMS field is changing, and that multi-faceted, outside-the-box thinking is needed to bring more people into the field—and retain them as they pursue further training.
One way Vanderwal is trying to attract and encourage young people to consider EMS as a career path is by increasing exposure to EMS careers in high schools around the Northwest region of the state. He wants to create a greater awareness of the responsibility of citizen responders to support the public need for emergency responders.
As one way of introducing EMS to students, Vanderwal has been working to provide Stop the Bleed training in every school system in the Northwest Region. He believes that Stop the Bleed training—a training to help everyone learn how to act quickly and appropriately in an accident—as well as training in stroke awareness and sepsis awareness, will help students be prepared to help family members and others by gaining confidence in supporting accident victims while waiting for emergency responders.
These trainings open the door to introducing EMS careers to young people by helping them see themselves as first responders. Tia Kocka, District Nurse for Park Rapids School District told us that “having Tom come to the school to train our students was a huge win and a great experience for our students, giving students a lifesaving tool to be able to truly help “stop the bleed” if needed.” She noted that “this training will stick with them for life. Our students learned these basic skills to aid in saving a life at home, school, or in the community. Our society is so mobile, learning these key 3 lifesaving steps to stop bleeding could save a life in any bleeding situation that these students may encounter. For our students to feel prepared to be able to help in a serious accident or disaster, instead of just standing by, is truly a gift to them and our society.”
Commenting further on “Stop the Bleed” training, Kocka shared that her “students enjoyed the training as it was a mix of classroom and hands-on learning. They were able to practice the techniques they learned right away while in the classroom and were given immediate feedback on how to better pack a wound or hold pressure, which allowed them to ensure they were doing it correctly.” In addition to training students, last year, she noted, “Tom came to train staff members in our district. The feedback from staff was fantastic. Staff enjoyed learning life saving measures to stop bleeding.”
Vanderwal furthers the goal of EMS preparedness by providing Stop the Bleed kits for many schools and locations throughout the region. As part of the training, staff are made aware of where these kits are placed so they can access them quickly if a bleeding injury does arise.
Vanderwal is also focusing attention on the fact that “too many workers are leaving the EMS field in pursuit of better pay and working conditions.” This lack of retention of EMS personnel, the EMSRB report noted, leads to “a reduced workforce (and) delays in response time…(in) some places.” To help address this, he would like more workers to be able to pursue dual pipeline training—training that offers an “earn-while-you-learn approach where the employer invests in their employee by providing training in competency standards to equip the employee with the specific knowledge and skills necessary for a particular occupation.”
He is promoting greater access to training for Emergency Medical Technician to Paramedic Pathway, with the hope that this path will interest those who have long worked as an Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) and are interested in becoming a Paramedic. Completing Paramedic training will allow them to earn more, retain them in the emergency services field, and ensure that there are more individuals working for emergency providers in rural Minnesota. Vanderwal would like to see this type of training and exposure across the state of Minnesota.
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Now read this:
“Stop the Bleed Training Aims to Create Citizen First Responders”
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