Baseball Season Is Here!

May 2012news from

Superior Ambulance is the contracted ambulance provider for both the Chicago White Sox and Chicago Cubs baseball teams. This year Superior has expanded its service at both parks to provide better service to players and fans! Starting with the Chicago White Sox, Superior Ambulance has added a 5th person who sits in the camera well directly next to the White Sox bench. This em-ployee is used as a liaison between the team physicians/trainers and the rest of the medical staff. This year service

was also expanded with the Chicago Cubs. Superior now pro-vides seven to nine medical staff at each game. Currently there

are three response teams that respond to calls within the park and handle all medical emergencies outside of the first aid room. Superior also pro-vides one game day supervisor who is responsible for coordinating any re-sponse or EMS issue that may happen. Let’s hope for a winning season!

2 Superior Lights & Sirens

Compliment

I wanted to bring to your attention the outstanding

performance of a couple Superior Ambulance EMTs.

It happens to everyone who works in EMS at some

point. You are holding an area, relaxing...reading the

paper, eating or playing on your phone...when suddenly

there is someone at your window with what is usually a

serious medical emergency. Now you’re on a call. It’s 0

to 60 in one second.

Such was the case on Friday, March 6th. Dominic Certa

and Adam Hegyi were holding 61st and I65 in Merrill-

ville. A car flew up next to them and a young guy got out

and said his Mom, who was driving, was having a heart

attack. Having had this happen to me more times than

I can count... I can tell you that it will certainly wake

you up. The outstanding actions and decisions that fol-

lowed absolutely gave this woman the very best possible

chance for a good outcome.

They didn’t panic, although they immediately recog-

nized the seriousness of the emergency.

They made the aggressive and appropriate decision

themselves to treat and transport to St. Mary’s, as the

ETA of an ALS ambulance was longer than their short

transport time. They placed the patient in a position of

comfort and then administered 100% O2 via a Non-Re-

breather mask, as well as gave the patient ASA per their

S.O.P.s. Then they began transporting the patient Code

2 to St. Mary’s.

I was in the ER at St. Mary’s at the time and had the

pleasure of hearing Dominic give an excellent, calm and

clear IHERN report of the patient’s condition as well as

their treatment. A STEMI Alert was issued and the Cath

Lab was placed on notice, all prior to the patient even

arriving at the hospital! Upon arriving at the hospital,

the ER Doctor and Nurses were already in the patient’s

room awaiting their arrival. Dominic and Adam gave a

very thorough report of their care and treatment to the

staff taking over the patient’s care.

So very often...Private Ambulance Service EMTs don’t

get the credit that they so rightly deserve.

There can be absolutely no question that the superb

and aggressive treatment administered by Dominic and

Adam gave this patient the very best possible chance

for a good recovery. It truly was Superior EMS at its

very best.

Lance Collins, Emergency Medical Technician,

Paramedic for 21 years.

4/10/12

EMS Week 2012is May 20 – 26!

This is a time to recognize workers in all areas of the EMS field. In honor of EMS week, we will be having our corporate annual barbeque on Tuesday, May 22nd. Check for postings at your stations for events at all of Superior’s stations to cel-ebrate EMS week!

5/1Jeffrey MooreDaniel Meyer

5/2 Janet BrooksJohn BrickBrian VossLeslie GilbertScott RosatiJonathan Boughton

5/3Christopher SidesEric CioniDewayne WalkerRobert Berriman

5/4Keith Roberts

5/5William RyanJason RaddatzJessica ClarkTiffany AbnerCarl HowardCarl HunterRachel George

5/6Benjamin OrosDouglas PicirilloThomas LynchWesley Bily

5/7 Matthew FranzenKyle MoriartyElizabeth RoigWilliam ThompsonKeith Gorman

5/8Noah ReyesJose IbarraGregory MaresMark DiedrichZina OpperMartin NelsonBrandon Young

5/9Linda JohnsonKenneth WelnetzJonathan ValentineDominic Tosto

5/10Kenneth LeeDave BurgdorfJeffrey Spoutz

5/11Clarissa LugoKele IveyDaniel HendersonGuy TimbsAnitrea Smith

5/12Daniel HarrisonSergio HernandezRangelSean Dennis

5/13Lawrence KocenMary KeatingTom JaegerEdgar RenteriaHeidi BrowerMichelle AmbroseCory Chisolm

5/14Karen MarshallJoseph BiasiPeter KennedyDavid ZagottaRebecca RalphPatrick FlowersChristopher Nickel

5/15 Justina Al-Shamrookh

5/16Jean HughesRickie StewartStephanie Butler

5/17Michael QuintanillaDaniel SchmidtMichael CraseDamien CupelloFerdinand Gerstenberg

5/18Leonidas MargelisOscar VillagomezMatthew McMillinJoshua JankeDavid JencksAlex TannerLynda WatsonKevin GadenBrian Marcotte

5/19John MonoscalcoStephanie Shannon

5/20Cody BrummPiotr StanulaSean MozdzenDuane HarrisEric PoleretzkySaul GonzalezErin ShanksRicardo MercadoJessica Olmos

5/21Fradela Joyce SorianoAmanda FaganAbbi LaneKyle Lafond

5/22Kirk LiedbergJason Taylor

5/23Alex PastranaBrandon TurnerNicole CarterWisam Khalil

5/24Alexis LopezDustin HawleyAlicja HeskinPatti BlomquistCynthia MontrosseRickey SandersJamar Peterson

5/25Olga VlasovaKevin HosackThomas MoranDawn ToddAaron HoganDionne PenmanCarolyn LandersTrent JohnsonRobert Lewis

5/26Stephanie PartridgeMichael WitzAmy Dotson

5/27Robert StarckDenis BrunnerJessica BertolottiCollin JacobsJohn GangiElizabeth SteelRaymond SebastianJoe NailerIsaac ZunigaPhilip BerginEric Stempien

5/28Zachary LythRobert Damon

5/29Anthony Herrera 29Richard Cole

5/30Edward SchaeferJorge EncinasCarlo RizzoJuanita Wash-Shell

5/31Daniel CossaEvan ShorShannon Scarbor-oughSarah StephanVernell JohnsonBrian Taylor

May Birthdays

23 YearsMartin Nelson

22 YearsDenis Brunner

19 YearsRichard Hoehne

17 YearsCharles ParsonsDavid SchreiberDarrell Goodman

16 YearsDavid Novotny

15 YearsKeith Ellis

12 YearsArelis NavarroJames BoyerMichael Lynn

11 YearsLatasha DunniganRaymond SebastianThomas LynchElzbieta IgielskiTammy Vaughn

10 YearsJacob Ocasio

5 YearsCody BrummCiara AlmonBarbara MarcynMaurice LacyJoseph BarlogFalon AdamsKathleen VanaJohn Abbo

May Milestone Anniversaries

From coasters to characters there’s fun for everyone! This year our picnic will be on June 16th. The later date means the park will be open from 10:00 AM – 10:00 PM, with Hurricane Harbor Water Park open from 11:15 AM – 7:00 PM. Check out Great America’s newest coaster ride, the X-FLIGHT.

Our seating time in the Picnic Grove will be from 3:00 PM – 5:30 PM, with lots to eat and games to play. Ticket prices are $18.50 each for the first two tickets and $37.00 for each additional ticket.

Tickets go on sale May 1st. Call Donna Prince to order your tickets by no later than June 11th at 800-832-200, ext. 2500.

ANNUALFAMILY DAY OUTING ATSIX FLAGSGREAT AMERICA

May 2012 3

4 Superior Lights & Sirens

About CPR cards: You are required to carry a valid CPR card along with your profes-sional credentials. There are only three cards accepted:• American Heart Association (AHA)• American Red Cross• Military Training Network

These cards are good for two years, and expire on the last CALENDAR day of the month the card was issued, so for example if the stamp on your card reads: May 2012, your card expires at midnight 5-31-2012.

To renew CPR:

1. Check your credentials at the beginning of every month. Tracking your credentials is YOUR responsibility, and you can’t work if they expire!

2. Plan to renew about 2 months prior to the expira-tion date to allow for time to receive the card without over-lapping.

3. Check our website under “Events Calendar” and reg-ister no later than 72 hours prior to the course. We need at least 3 for the class to run, so gather your friends if they need CPR, otherwise the class may be cancelled due to lack of enrollment. In the event of a cancellation an email will be sent to ALL REGISTERED ATTENDEES & STATION MANAGERS, so registration is imperative.

4. Once you are registered please make sure you attend, and be on time. Sites where registered people frequently fail to attend may be pulled, and late-comers can be turned away. Print your name and ad-dress neatly on the roster…our

spelling is only as good as your handwriting. Remember: CARDS ARE NO LONGER ISSUED AT THE CLASS!

5. Training center rules have changed. Once a class is com-pleted, your instructor has to submit paperwork to SAS AHA Training Center Faculty to verify it is complete and ac-curate. The TCF will then send it to our Training Center for processing. It may take a week or more before we receive the cards for that class. Once re-ceived, the cards are printed and sent via U.S. mail to your home. Because of all the steps and time involved, this is why we suggest renewing 2 months prior. AHA guidelines allow as much as 30 days from the date of a class for the card to be issued, so early renewal will eliminate crossover, avoiding suspension, thus keeping you working.

6. Online op-tion: We’ve had employees fall for scam CPR sites that cost $40+! Scam cards will have fine print that states “The above has met the standards set forth by [Joe’s Backyard CPR Train-ing, Inc].” A sure-fire way is to go on ahaonline.org and do their class (not from the list of sponsored links). The cost is $22.50. After the test it will offer a printable page. Print it and make an appointment with a CPR instructor to have your skills tested ASAP. Your paperwork will then be sub-mitted to the training center as outlined above. See above for a list of approved CPR cards…anything else will not be accepted!

NEW! CPR RecertificationRecommendations and ProceduresBy James S. Boyer, EMT-B, LI, AHA BLS Training Center Fac-ulty (Acute Care Education Systems)

News from IndianaFranciscan Alliance DedicationSuperior EMT Alistair Dowds and Flight Crew-member Walter Dobinson, FP-C, CCEMT-P in front of Air Med 1 at the EMS Open House in Chesterton, IN on March 13th, 2012.

Walter Dobinson, Flight Paramedic for Air Med 1 said, “It is always a posi-tive thing when we can get people care much faster than going by ground. Each flight will be manned by a pilot, a paramedic and a nurse to en-sure the best care.”

Tom Bettenhausen, Operations Manager for Superior Ambu-lance and Strike Team Leader of IDHS (Indiana Department of Homeland Security) District 1 said, “We will be manning this emergency facility 24 hours a day and also supplying additional ambulance service, along with Air Med. 1, a helicopter for criti-cally injured and sick transports. Minutes matter and we can fly the patients out so people can get much needed medical care at a Level 1 trauma center.” Pictured along with the ambulance is the IDHS District 1 Mass Casualty Truck and Trailer.

Franciscan Alliance dedicated its new Emergency Center in Ches-terton on March 8 with a blessing performed by Most Reverend Dale J. Melczek, Bishop of the Diocese of Gary. Among those in attendance included Ken Sink and Tom Betten-hausen from Superior Ambulance Service, along with Chief Mike Orlich and Nate Williams from the Chesterton Fire Department.

Our ambulance 127 is branded with Franciscan Alliance St. An-thony Health - Chesterton Health & Emergency Center

As of March 20, we have had three transfers from the facility, and the Chesterton residents appear thrilled that the organization has made the commitment to their community.

May 2012 5

Superior Volunteers Help the Shriners

On March 28th, twelve Superior em-ployees assisted special needs children attending the Shrine Circus. This was the first event for our newly formed group of volunteers with the mission of “giv-ing back to our communities and our cit-izens”. Our crews received high praise for their assistance and were invited back next year. All volunteers purchased a Su-perior Volunteer t-shirt that we will wear for all our future volunteer activities.

Food Drive Aids Tornado Victims At EasterTo help support those affected by the Dexter Tornado, Michigan held an Eas-ter Food Drive. Our employees were divided into eight teams (Allen Park, Detroit and Southfield stations, Admin-istration/Data, Dispatch, and the Warren Crews were divided into 4 groups by the Ops supervisors). Team Teeter (admin/data) won a pizza party lunch by collect-ing the most food, but Team Butler (dis-patch) was a close second so they were included in the pizza lunch! All food that was collected was donated to Dexter Tornado Relief Fund.

Management Outing

Michigan Management had a team build-ing activity on March 31 and went go-cart racing. They have all been advised to keep their day jobs as making a living racing does not seem to be in their im-mediate future.

Michigan Employee Fun Day

Employees, family and friends from throughout the Michigan Region gath-ered for a fun afternoon of Whirly Ball on April 14. This gave our new and old employees a way to get to know those they don’t work with every day, and also let their families meet their co-workers. Fun was had by all and everyone is look-ing forward to the next outing. Special thanks to Drew Cunningham, Christine Baltes, Pat Busch and Andy Brown for coordinating all our employee activities and volunteer events.

Superior Off-duty Assist

Erik Williams was off-duty on Sunday, April 15th attending church with his family. A member of his church congre-gation passed out during service. Erik was quickly located by a few Deacons & Ushers and he immediately went into ac-tion assessing the patient and contacting Lenox Township EMS. They, as well as the church family, had nothing but posi-tive words to say about his professional and compassionate patient care. Erik did not leave the member’s side, comforting him through the whole ordeal. He made sure that the member was monitored and stabilized until EMS arrived. Because of his swift actions, the member was transported without further incident and seen at the local hospital. He was later released, is doing well, and wanted to thank Erik for helping him during such a scary episode.

SUPERIOR job Erik—we are all very proud of YOU!

Superior Skill At EMS ExpoNatalie Coste and Brandon Young repre-sented Superior in the skills competition at the EMS Expo in Grand Rapids on April 19th. There was a new format this year which required participants to take a written exam, a skills exam and then the two highest scoring teams went on to the final competition. We are proud to say that Brandon was honored for hav-ing the third highest score on the written exam. Next year the expo is being held at Cobo Hall in Detroit so we’ll have a very short distance to go to compete!

News From Michigan

NORCOMM BRIEFS

6 Superior Lights & Sirens

Telecommunicator Assists Special Needs CallerBy Donald Nielsen, Executive Director, Norcomm Public Safety Communications, Inc.

On April 1st, Telecommunicator Marc Quattrocchi received a 9-1-1 transfer from Cook County saying a woman yelled but they were unable to communicate. Marc took over the call, and noticed the sound of a TDD (Telecommunications Device for the Deaf) in the background. He typed a message and was able to find out the nature of the call and made sure the right units got there to help in a timely manner. Marc’s quick think-ing helped the caller get the help she needed. Nice work!

Telecommunicators Aid Suicidal CallerBy Donald Nielsen, Executive Director, Norcomm Public Safety Communications, Inc.

Telecomunicators Josh Younglove and Erika Jones received multiple cellular 9-1-1 calls from an unknown caller. After a call trace was initiated, Norcomm personnel were able to open a line to the caller. The caller was reporting that they were with a person who was threatening suicide by jumping off of a bridge. Police officers and EMS per-sonnel were sent to the scene, and the incident was pre-vented. Norcomm personnel were able to react calmly and quickly during a high stress incident, providing help when it was needed before tragedy struck. Great job!

Underage Party Shut Down!By Lisa Knowski, 911 Director, River Grove Station

The Norcomm/River Grove 911 Center re-ceived a 9-1-1 call from a resident advising he heard loud music and screaming coming from his neighbor’s garage. Telecommunica-tor Kelly Capek received all the information and dispatched the River Grove police units to the scene. When the officers arrived on scene they found an underage drinking party. The police requested two ambulances to the scene. Kelly dispatched the River Grove Fire Department and then contacted Elmwood Park Fire for a mutual aid ambulance. Kelly handled all the radio traffic for both police and fire. The officers then requested Kelly to start making notifications to the kids parents and to advise them to come down to the police department. Kelly handled all radio traffic and notifications in a professional manner. This is just another great job by a Nor-comm Telecommunicator.

Kelly Capek

Subject Barricades Himself in Cicero Apt.By Marisa Cotton, 9-1-1 Director, Cicero Station

On March 9th, Heather Buh-le, Leticia Dardon and Gail Redding were working the Dayshift when they received a call of a disturbance with an armed subject, which quickly turned into the armed subject barricading himself in the apartment and threatening to hurt himself. This apartment is in close proximity to two schools, so the decision was made to place the two schools on lockdown for the children’s safety. Heather, Leticia and Gail worked very well to-gether, dispatching units to the scene while keeping of-ficer safety in mind the entire time. They also handled all the calls from the worried parents, calming them down and reas-suring them that their children were safe. In addition to this they also had to coordinate with traffic control officers the streets that needed to be blocked off and made all the notifica-tions to the different departments that assisted our department. Great Job Ladies!

Leticia Dardon

Gail Redding

Heather Buhle

Marc Quattrocchi

Josh Younglove Erika Jones

Norcomm Celebrates National Public Safety Telecommunicator WeekBy Donald Nielsen, Executive Director, Norcomm PublicSafety Communications, Inc.

April is recognized as 9-1-1 Education Month and is also when we celebrate National Public Safety Telecommunicator Week. I would like to thank Operations Manager Robin Lewis for her effort to make both of these events special to our personnel at each Norcomm station. Robin chairs our Public Education Committee, and has given several presenta-tions, along with other Norcomm personnel, this past month for seniors and children.

Robin has also coordinated several events for our Telecom-municators including themed dress days, games, contests, and catered meals during National Telecommunicator Week. Her efforts have been appreciated by everyone, and we would like to acknowledge her efforts, Great job, Robin!

Robin Lewis

May 2012 7

METROA Look At...Metro RoselleBy FF/Paramedic Thomas Lynch, Roselle Contract Manager

Metro started the Roselle contract January 1st 2010. Per the Roselle contract, everyone must be cross trained Medic/Firefighter II, PHTLs, ACLS, PALS certified as well as CPR instructors. We operate in Region 8 un-der the Cen-tral DuPage Hospital as our resource hospital.

We came a long way with only having two weeks to pre-pare in orientation for the town of 25,000 residents with 9 districts that include both Cook and DuPage coun-ties along with the Elgin-O’Hare expressway. When needed, our ambulance also responds to the surround-ing towns of Itasca, Bloomingdale, and Hanover Park. Last year we responded to 2400 EMS calls. I am proud to mention that all of our Metro medics have displayed pride, dedication and professionalism and have re-ceived recognition on multiple calls for a job well done on incidents ranging from cardiac arrest saves to stroke, trauma, or simply providing supportive care to those frequent flyer patients that we respond to at all hours of the night. We have six full time Firefighter/Paramed-ics and two alternates. Mike Agos, Jon Valentine, Adam Mullendore, Dave Mueller, Chris Fischer and myself, Thomas Lynch, as the contract manager.

Recently the village purchased a 2010 Ford F560 am-bulance that is now our front line response rig with back up camera so you can see the crew and patient in the back as well as viewing the rear of the ambulance when reversing into the hospital bay. Overall we will continue to represent Metro in the most professional manner and go above and beyond in serving the Village of Roselle.

Thank you for Great Teamwork!By Lisa Knowski, 9-1-1 Director, River Grove Station

The Norcomm/Leyden 911 Center received a 911 call from an elderly female advising she had fallen and was home alone. Telecommunicator Justina Al-Shamrookh received the infor-mation and determined the caller was in River Grove. Justina then transferred the call to myself and advised me of the incident. I took additional informa-tion from the elderly female. Telecommunica-tor Lisa Conti then got on the line. I needed a mutual aid ambulance from Melrose Park Fire due to River Grove being on another call. Telecommunicator Stacy O’Connor handled the dispatch of Melrose Park 701. Lisa then began asking the caller additional questions and was using her EMD train-ing to get further medical his-tory so we could advise the responding units. Lisa Conti stayed on with the caller until the ambulance and engine ar-rived on scene. I had to hang up to answer other calls in River Grove. I do not have a partner and appreciated her staying on with the River Grove resident trying to keep her calm. This was great teamwork by the Leyden and River Grove 9-1-1 Centers. Justina, Lisa and Stacy are all assets to the Norcomm team and are always striv-ing to be their best.

Justina Al-Shamrookh and Stacy O’Connor

Lisa Conti

Franklin Park Dispatcher Commendedfor Exceptional ServiceBy Donald Nielsen, Executive Director, Norcomm Public Safety Communications, Inc.

On March 29th, Steve Stelloh received a call from a woman asking him to check on her brother who lived in Franklin Park. The woman was from California, and had not heard from her brother in several days and was concerned. Steve entered the call for dis-patch, and officers went to the location. Un-fortunately, the elderly gentleman had passed. Steve called back the sister and explained what happened. He could have been matter of fact about the situation, but he dis-played a kind, caring attitude that made the situation a bit bet-ter by his concern. The woman wrote a letter to the Frankllin Park Police Chief to express her gratitude to Steve and let him know what an asset he is to the Department. We would also like to express our thanks to Steve on a job well done.

Steve Stelloh

MarchMost Crew ComplimentsNorth – Duane Harris, Michael PandocchiSouth – Kristopher Mallo, Brandon TurnerMichigan – David Doni-gian

Most CallsNorth – Andrew BogueSouth – Zeidan ZeidanIndiana – Chris Gonzales (IMC), America Devine (SAS)Michigan – Jamar Peter-son (Amb)

More Safety Winners!

EMS Week honors those who deliver care in

EMS. The events held each year are our way

to say thank you for all you do and to cele-

brate our industry and our accomplishments

at Superior. Thank you for participating in

these events. I look forward to seeing you.

– Dave

EMS on the Hill DayThe American Ambulance Association (AAA) and the National Association of EMTs (NAEMT) joined together last month for EMS on the Hill Day in our nation’s capitol. Over 200 EMS profession-als from 40 states attended this year’s lobby day to educate Congress about im-portant EMS issues and legislation. Supe-rior was represented by Dave Hill, Kim Godden, Eric Stem-pien and Chuck Kearns, who met with members of Congress representing Illinois, Michigan and Indiana to discuss reim-bursement issues affecting EMS and health care reform.

The two day event concluded with a reception on Wednesday evening where House Chief Deputy Whip Congressman Peter Roskam addressed the group. Cong. Roskam represents Supe-rior’s headquarters in Elmhurst and is a wonderful advocate for EMS. We look forward to having Cong. Roskam out to Elmhurst for an ambulance ride along this summer.

Congratulations to Deborah Escobar on winning the Medicar 30 day injury free prize in February, Adri-enne Hammerstein for winning the Indiana 30 day injury free prize in March, Ronald Shirk for winning the Michigan no at fault crashes in March, and Larry Pruitt who won the Indiana 90 day no patient injury prize. The prizes in this current round were IPads and laptop computers with printers. Medicar has reached a huge milestone of going 90 days injury free and will be eligible to raffle off a trip. Please keep up the great work everyone!

Deborah Escobar with George

Figueroa, Gloria Cisneros, and Kenny Griggs

Larry Pruitt with Ken Sink

AdrienneHammerstein with Ken Sink

Ron Shirk with Char Teeter and Andy Brown