EMS Receives Honor At World Expo

The Northeast Montana Health Services’ EMS was recently recognized for an impressive achievement at the EMS World Expo held in Atlanta.

James Wilson, Wolf Point EMS site supervisor, and Amanda Schock teamed up in the EMS World Clinical Challenge to earn first-place honors for Basic Life Support.

“We were surprised,” Schock said of winning the honor.

Wilson added, “We were nervous and surprised.”

They noted they take part in monthly trainings with the goal of being the best trained possible for traumas.

“Clearly, it’s working if we come back with first place in the world,” Schock said.

The Expo is the largest EMS dedicated event in the world which features a curriculum on advancing technology, emerging treatments and leadership strategies focused on improving patient care and outcomes. They both attended various interactive and practical forums including advanced burn care, pediatric patient management, advanced CPR techniques, advancing diabetes treatment/management, and many other educational and leadership forums.

The Expo featured more than 3,000 EMS individuals. There were hundreds of classes available and break-out sessions took place.

Northeast Montana Health Services features 12 EMTs in Wolf Point and 13 EMTs at its sister campus in Poplar. About three-quarters of EMS is volunteers.

“We are always looking for more help,” Wilson said.

If interested in serving as an EMT, call Wilson at 406-653-6558.

“We’re always there for the community,” Schock said. “We’re always there to support them. Our staff works hard day and night.”

NEMHS EMS offers trauma education and also does trauma outreach for swimming pool lifeguards. During EMS Week, they provided an informational review to area students. Staff recently assisted during vaccine clinics at Frontier, Brockton and Frazer schools.

Party because of COVID, calls have nearly doubled this fiscal year compared to the previous fiscal year. The coverage area for Wolf Point EMS includes as far as Vida, Frazer and near Lustre.

Wilson has been involved with EMS for 10 years.

“I throughly enjoy what I do,” he said.

Schock’s experience includes five years with NEMHS EMS.

“It’s very rewarding,” she said. “It’s a lot of training, but at the end, it’s rewarding.”

They thank the community for its constant support of EMS.

“The community keeps supporting all of us,” Schock said. “We thank them for everything. They care about the first responders.”