VCAD: More than just an ambulance service

Being an emergency medical technician or paramedic often requires more than meets the eye.

Many residents only contact with an ambulance and the people who work in them is when it comes up behind them with lights flashing and sirens blaring or when they experience their own emergency.

The Vernon County Ambulance District -- VCAD, as it is commonly known -- is comprised of a group of 10 highly trained and "dedicated" individuals who serve the community 24 hours a day, seven days a week, every day of the year, said James McKenzie, VCAD director. They are much more than just ambulance drivers and they respond to situations ranging from a simple bellyache to cardiac arrest or natural disasters or horrible vehicle crashes with multiple victims.

It's not an easy job.

According to McKenzie, the profession has a fairly high turnover rate. Even though VCAD has experienced some of that turnover in the past, the staff they now employ is stable. McKenzie said that a lot of young men or women come into the field anxious to be of service but find out it is not something just anyone can hack.

Crew members work a 24-hour shift on and 72 hours off and are on call every minute.

By law, an ambulance has to be out of base within five minutes of getting a call, but they try to get out in four or less. It's fast paced and can be stressful. Much of their work goes on unseen in a patient's home or in the truck during transport. Imagine a driver trying to negotiate traffic on Austin Boulevard at 5 p.m. while his partner is trying to insert an IV into a patient and get some vital signs to relay to the hospital so they can be prepared to accept the patient and you get the picture.

A new hire at VCAD must have two years of college just to start with, and then there is the on-the-job training which usually takes several months. McKenzie said having medical knowledge is just the beginning. Current advancements in training and technology have made it possible for EMTs and paramedics to do things they couldn't have done 10 years ago.

A paramedic and EMT are not the same thing. A paramedic has more training and has the knowledge and skills to insert an IV, administer medication and perform more complicated medical procedures, while an EMT can provide life saving service and support not requiring expertise which is so complex. Both perform vital services to the residents of the city and county community.

"We're their 911," McKenzie said.

VCAD employees stay busy, handling about a dozen calls per day this year. So far this year, the call volume is already what it was for all of last year, McKenzie said.

He couldn't attribute the increase in volume to any one thing, but it seemed like transfers were up.

Any time an ambulance is needed, a VCAD team of two does the job in one of the five full-equipped and functional trucks they run.

Each ambulance is a rolling mini hospital, stocked, cleaned, maintained and cared for meticulously every day.

Even if a team is working a transfer or accident, another team is at the district's home base at 515 E. Walnut St. waiting for a call.

Having the ability to serve means ongoing training. New techniques and equipment require new knowledge and so do new policies and government mandates. McKenzie said every time a truck goes out an hour's worth of documentation has to be done when the crew returns to base.

VCAD also provides training to all of the first responders in the county. They conduct CPR training classes and participate in numerous community education opportunities such as the recently finished Community Emergency Response Team training. The 12 people set to graduate from the course tonight will get further training and be an asset to the community.

McKenzie said the nature of Nevada's location dictates planning for the worst and being prepared.

"Redundancy is a way of doing business here," he said. "We don't have a cavalry to call because of our distance from everything, so we have to be prepared to handle things on our own.