HELENA — Last year, Montana Emergency Medical Services were requested more than 162,000 times. EMS staff from across the state were honored at the Capitol on Tuesday for their dedication to keeping the Treasure State safe and healthy.
The Department of Public Health and Human Services, alongside Lt. Gov. Kristen Juras, recognized five EMS personnel or providers from across Montana, including Lewistown Fire Rescue, Bitterroot Health Ambulance, the Central Valley Fire District, and Flathead County Emergency Medical Services.
Volunteer EMS Provider of the Year Award, Brian Godbey, Senior Firefighter-EMT, Lewistown Fire Rescue. This award honors a volunteer EMS provider who is exemplary in his/her quality of patient care and dedication to their community.
Career EMS Provider of the Year Award, Sara Monroe, paramedic, Bitterroot Health Ambulance. This award is for a career EMS provider who exemplifies quality of care and dedication to the community.
EMS Service of the Year Award, Central Valley Fire District, Belgrade. The EMS Service of the Year recipient exhibits dedication to improving patient care through education, injury prevention, community awareness, medical director involvement, and collaboration with surrounding EMS services.
EMS Supporter of the Year Award, Alan Browne, paramedic and Flathead County EMS Program Manager, Kalispell. This award honors an individual(s) who has demonstrated exceptional support for EMS, EMS agencies, and the broader EMS system.
EMS for Children Supporter Award, Juanita Beuter, RN, Park County School Nurse, Gardiner. This award recognizes an individual or organization that has demonstrated excellence in providing pediatric EMS care and/or education. The recipient is an outstanding role model for colleagues while consistently demonstrating commitment to high-quality, professional EMS care to the pediatric patient.
State leadership says it’s a time to recognize the over 6,000 Montanans who always answer the call.
Briana Scherrer is one of those Montanans. She is a firefighter-paramedic with Central Valley Fire District and shared, “Our job is the best job in the world and every day is a gift, and so if we treat it like that and give every single patient a piece of that gift and remind ourselves of why we are here, I think that is the strongest advice I have.”
The ceremony is all a part of Emergency Medical Services Week, which runs from May 17 to 24.
