When you or your loved ones get into a car crash, or have a sudden medical emergency, or when our student athletes need emergency medical attention on the sidelines – will anyone come? Here in Eagle Grove, where we have no 24 hour emergency room in town, that is the core of the question behind the EMS Essential Service special election to be held this coming Tuesday, September 12th.
Of course, the vote will be county wide, and affects the EMS services in Belmond, Clarion, Dows, and Goldfield as well. And the voters in each of those communities and throughout the county will all have their say in the matter.
This election is essentially a renewal of the property tax levy which voters approved in 2018, roughly two years after the Dows Ambulance Service shut down. That levy was set to sunset after five years, after which it would again be up to the voters to decide whether to renew it. And that time has come.
In an Op-Ed published in this issue, Eagle Grove EMS Service Director Lashelle Burger listed some of the uses to which levy funds have been put over the past five years, here in Eagle Grove. These include the purchase of modern equipment; for example heart monitors, powered stretchers, and a new, at the time, 2019 model ambulance. The levy has also financed the recruitment and training of staff in the ever evolving life saving techniques in the emergency medical field, including earning their Emergency Medical Technician (EMT), advanced EMT, Pediatric Emergency Assessment Recognition and Stabilization (PEARS), Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR), and Emergency Vehicle Operators courses and certifications.
More county-wide, Burger pointed out, one use of the funding which has proven to be crucial is the Wright County Quick Response Vehicle (QRV). More a stocked-up SUV than an ambulance, the Quick Response Vehicle. Here in Eagle Grove the QRV crew has been called upon to aid the critically ill, proving to be a "vital asset to the patient", as Burger put it, in a life and death moment.
A few members of the local EMS service spoke out on the issue to the Eagle.
“Emergency Medical Services plays a pivotal role in safeguarding the health and well-being of
local citizens," said EMT Jason Bittner. "Rapid response to medical emergencies can often be the difference between life and death."
“EMS should be considered essential because we take care of people in the community and
surrounding areas," said ambulance Driver and EMT student Monica Matthes. We don’t do this for the money or recognition, but rather for the purpose of being there at someone's most vulnerable time."
"EMS professionals provide vital pre-hospital care, stabilizing and ensuring appropriate treatment is provided prior to arrival to the hospital," Bittner added.
"We are faces someone sees when they are hurting or dying and we want to be able to do everything we can to make them feel comfortable," Matthes noted.
"In rural areas, where access to medical facilities might be limited, EMS Services are a lifeline that bridges the gap between critical moments and professional medical care,” Bittner said.
Matthes agreed, "EMS is essential to this community as the citizens look up to us and count on us because they know that we, as a team, will respond to help, support, and soothe when called upon.”
Polls will open at 7:00 AM and close at 8:00 PM this coming Tuesday, the 12th, at Memorial Hall in Eagle Grove, the Goldfield Fire Station, the Dows Convention Center, the Belmond City Hall (for Belmond and Rowan voters), and at the Wright County Courthouse for Clarion voters.
