Page 80 - MLT December

Safety First continued from page 45 “
Ambulance companies’ varying business structures make for interesting, often difficult economics. Unlike police and fire departments, many don’t get substantial funding from the townships they serve.
An EMS team typically arrives at
the scene with little information from dispatch, which comes in the form of brief descriptions like “walking wounded” or “respiratory incident.” “It’s like being
a medical detective,” says Christine Luczka, a full-time EMT with Plymouth Community Ambulance Association, one of the 22 ambulance companies serving Montgomery County. “I hand them my
chart and give a 20-second report that sums up the 20 minutes of work we did before we got to the hospital.”
That “hand-off” transfer is critical. “They need to know what the patient needs right away and what can wait, especially if the ER is busy with critical patients,” Luczka says.
An 18-year-old freshman at Bryn Mawr College, Elizabeth Sharp is part of that school’s volunteer EMS team. She rides
with Narberth Ambulance on Thursday evenings and spends Friday nights with EMS at Bryn Mawr. Raised in New York City, Sharp spent her high school years
in the NYPD’s law enforcement explorer program. After passing a variety of tests, she was accepted to an FBI post, where she participated in security operations at John F. Kennedy Airport and elsewhere. “Part of the reason I chose Bryn Mawr is because
continued on page 80
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