Local EMT earns advanced certificate

Several Kimball Ambulance Service EMTs have strived to better the area's emergency care. Several of the EMTs have completed advanced EMT training, which is exactly what EMT Heather Gawith recently accomplished.

"Basically, now that I am an advanced EMT, we can start IVs and give the patients fluids if we need to. We have the ability to administer certain pain killers depending on the circumstance, such as cardiac or trauma. We can also give the patient albuterol for respiratory emergencies. We can carry EpiPens so that we can give those in case of some sort of allergic reaction," Gawith said

Gawith is excited to be able to do more for her community by having her certification. However, obtaining the advanced EMT training is not as simple as one might like to think. It is a lot of hard work and can take quite some time.

"Class was probably five months, and then we had to do 205 hours of clinical time and tests on the computer as well as hands on testing. In all, it probably took a year to get everything done," Gawith said.

Gawith completed her clinical hours at Regional West ER, Alliance and Valley Ambulance. The purpose of these clinical hours being to give the trainee some experience.

"We do this so that way we can get the hands on experience that we need. We shadow someone when we do our clinical hours. They always want you working with someone because you're operating under their license so they don't want anything to go wrong," Gawith said.

Gawith has always had the desire to become a paramedic, and she started the process after new regulations went into effect. Before the step after EMT was to paramedic, however, the new regulations made it so that there was another step involved. Now in order to reach paramedic status, one must first obtain their advanced EMT license.

"I just missed it, before they changed the rules, so I am working towards being a paramedic and this certification means that I am almost there," Gawith said.

Once a paramedic, Gawith will be able to perform more in depth airway procedures in the field that could potentially save doctors at the hospital time and save a patient's life.

"Ultimately the things we do on scene really help cut down on the time the hospital would have to take doing what we did. Also if it gets done quicker, it can mean a big difference in the outcome of a patient's life or situation in general," Gawith said.

The ambulance can now really make a difference in the desperation of a situation. For a respiratory problem, they can now administer albuterol or an EpiPen, which will allow the situation to be less severe once they have reached the hospital. With a cardiac problem, they can administer certain pain killers to help open up the vessels so the patient isn't in as much pain during a heart attack.

Everything that the ambulance crew does in the field is so that the hospital can start out with a higher level of care in any given emergency situation. If an IV has been started on the scene, that means that it cuts the hospital's time down and staff there are much quicker when it comes to being able to administer a patient drugs that they might need in the situation.

The differences are there concerning the hospital ER versus working on an ambulance in the field.

"Hospitals are a much more controlled environment. Also, if something goes wrong, you have all the hands you need to fix something. In the field on the ambulance, you often have a limited amount of people who are able to help out. It's a difference for sure," Gawith said.

Gawith is not the only member of the ambulance personnel working toward improving upon her already present knowledge and skills. Carla Goranson, ambulance director, and Vanessa Nelson are also working toward their advanced EMT certification.

"We're a family at the ambulance and we really care about each other and we care about doing the best we can in providing care for Kimball," Gawith said.

Gawith plans to strive toward becoming a paramedic now that she has her advanced EMT certification.