December 14, 2011
Firefighters
demonstrate new skills
by Vance Gutzman
There's more to being a firefighter than fighting fires.
Deep River's firefighters, for example, are now equipped with the
training they need to deal with all manner of medical emergencies, and
they demonstrated the breadth of that training to town council last
week.
"The first six minutes of any medical emergency are critical," fire
chief Gene Thompson told council.
The firefighters underwent an intensive training course earlier this
fall to acquire the necessary skills to deal with medical emergencies,
and help bridge the gap until paramedics arrive on scene.
"Emergency Patient Care", a course offered at the Ontario Fire College
(OFC), is part of the firefighter curriculum developed by the OFC and
the Ontario Fire Marshal's office.
Deep River's firefighters were trained in emergency first response by
Dave Bulkiewicz, who has 23 years of experience as an advanced care
paramedic with emergency medical services in Prince Edwards and
Hastings counties.
Bulkiewicz has trained many municipal and industrial first responders
over the years, and he put the Deep River firefighters through a
week-long session involving training days that ran from 10 to 12 hours.
"Every scenario was very graphic," firefighter Rob McLaren told town
council.
"Probably as close to the real thing as you could get."
The graphic scenarios paid off, however, as the firefighters are
now equipped with the training and equipment which permits them
to respond to medical emergencies that either require immediate
attention or in cases where ambulance response is delayed.
"It's a tremendous service we're delivering, in addition to
firefighting," McLaren said, adding that the medical training should
prove to be opportune when the firefighters are called out for auto
extrications.
"The fact we can provide emergency first response is a benefit to
anyone in a collision. We don't have to wait for the ambulance to get
there... we can start right away."
McLaren also took pains to stress that the emergency first response
training is not meant to abrogate the services provided by paramedics.
"It's not meant to be a substitute for EMS. It's a supplement," he said.
And, in addition to providing a valuable service for members of the
public they are charged with protecting, the emergency first response
training could also pay dividends for the firefighters themselves.
"It's possible one of our own could go down as well," firefighter Shawn
Madore told council.
McLaren, Madore and Vic Ahokas also presented a static display of the
equipment and skills they acquired, and their presentation was
well-received by council.
"This is a really positive addition to the service," Councillor Terry
Myers said, while pointing out that the Deep River fire service is the
first of its kind in all of Renfrew County to offer the emergency first
response service.
Mayor David Thomson concurred with that sentiment.
"This is a vital service for our community," he told the firefighters.
"I really appreciate the leadership you've demonstrated."
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