Wisconsin EMS Association® (WEMSA®) honors 2021 EMS Excellence in Service Awards Winners
Contact: Alan DeYoung, Executive Director
Wisconsin EMS Association
26422 Oakridge Dr.
Wind Lake, WI 53185
P 414-431-8193
alan@wisconsinems.com
Wind Lake, WI — The Wisconsin EMS Association® is pleased to announce the recipients of the 2021 EMS Excellence in Service Awards. The awards will be presented during the Wisconsin EMS Association’s Conference and Expo on Saturday, October 30, 2021 at the Central Wisconsin Convention Center in Rothschild, WI.
“I am excited about each and every one of these winners, as they truly deserve their nomination and awards through their dedication and service through some of the toughest times and their tenacity to go above and beyond in their areas.” said Alan DeYoung, WEMSA Executive Director.
We congratulate the following recipients and recognize their outstanding contributions to the EMS profession and the patients they serve:
2021 WEMSA Lifetime Achievement
Pamela Witt-Hillen, Flight Nurse, ThedaStar Air Medical, Neenah
Here are some of the highlights from her nomination:
“Pam Hillen defines ‘Lifetime Achievement’ and thus I am recommending her for the WI EMS Association’s 2021 “Lifetime Achievement Award”. When ThedaStar Air Medical began service in 1986 Pam was one of the original flight nurses and performed the first patient transport with the program in June 1986. Over the past 35 years, she has impacted countless lives in her role as a flight nurse. Those impacted include patients she has cared for and transported, patient families, co-workers and colleagues in the healthcare and EMS community, and most importantly, youth through injury prevention education efforts."
"While Pam retired from full-time service in 2017, she continues to be an active member of the ThedaStar team working on a PRN basis performing patient care and transport. She also remains active in performing outreach activities to educate pre-hospital and other healthcare providers on the appropriate utilization of air medical services."
"One of Pam’s biggest passions over her career has been providing injury prevention education to the youth in the fox cities region. Pam was instrumental in bringing the PARTY (Prevention of Alcohol and Risk-Related Trauma in Youth) program to the Fox Cities region in the late 90s. This program has impacted thousands of youths over the past 23+ years."
"While I could go on for pages regarding Pam’s professional accomplishments; it’s Pam, the person, that truly deserves this award. Pam has always put her patients and their families first in all she does. This is best described in the words of those whom she has touched over the past 35 years.”
Comments from people she served after her retirement was announced: https://thedacare.org/news-and-events/community/an-original-thedastar-flight-nurse-retires/.
2021 WEMSA Dispatcher of the Year
Chad Crowley, Flight Communications Specialist, Flight For Life, Waukesha
Here are some of the highlights from his nomination:
“Chad is professional, knowledgeable and approachable. His coworkers look to him as a leader and a resource to learn from. He is also one of our top Trainers and his trainees always relate to him….”
“Our pilots feel safe knowing that Chad is working in the communication center. They know he is an additional set of eyes and ears making sure they are safe….”
“I cannot say enough about the dedication that Chad brings to Flight For Life and our communication center. This is not just a job to Chad, it is family and he works above and beyond to keep us safe…”
“Chad has proven himself an asset to the Flight For Life program by embodying our program’s core values; safety as paramount, providing services to everyone, those with illness or injuries have the right to high quality and dignified care and being well versed in technical and clinical innovations….”
2021 WEMSA Educator of the Year
James Boland, EMS Instructor/ EMS Education Coordinator, Northeast Wisconsin Technical College
Here are some of the highlights from his nomination:
“He is the most hardworking, caring instructor I’ve ever had. Not only does he love his job, he genuinely cares for his students and their futures. I went into EMT class not knowing anything that pertains to the EMS world and not only have succeeded in the class, I passed both NREMT exams the first time….”
“[If] He doesn’t know something (rare) he will look it up and get back to you in a timely manner. He gave us opportunities to come in before class to hone our skills and made himself available outside of school hours if we needed it….”
“Jim’s dedication, enthusiasm, and discipline to the EMS field serves as a strong role model of what to aspire to in the EMS field.”
“ In addition to his high level of dedication for each of his classes, I understand Jim is also involved in supporting and improving the Wisconsin state EMS curriculum. Reflecting on Jim’s impact to Wisconsin’s EMS field, I am grateful I got to learn from him and wish that all instructors across Wisconsin’s state EMS programs provide the same level of dedication and commitment that Jim does to his EMS practice and education, his students, and the courses he delivers to help grow Wisconsin’s future EMS providers.”
2021 WEMSA Support Person of the Year
Carrie Meier, Assistant Director, Dane County Emergency Management
Here are some of the highlights from her nomination:
“Carrie Meier has spent her entire career advancing EMS agencies throughout Dane County through her role in the EMS Division of Dane County Emergency Management. She has worked in the department for over 15 years, her role most recently changing from EMS Coordinator to Assistant Director of the department.”
“During the pandemic, Carrie also had funds secured from the county to purchase Covid-19 testing kits that were then used with the express purpose of testing EMS personnel and other members of public safety. She organized weekly days and times for members to get tested quickly and safely; many expressed appreciation for this opportunity and it was seen as a largely beneficial opportunity for our public safety community.”
“She is a team player who works to resolve issues to the benefit of as many players as possible, and she is someone who inspires many while always leading with empathy.”
“Just before Covid, she led an effort to bring trainers from King County here to train EMS members on high-performance CPR. The Resuscitation Academy was a huge success, with 2 members from each agency in attendance, along with several area hospital representatives. With her leadership, this effort is being brought back to the forefront of our goals as we return back to normal operations.”
2021 WEMSA EMT of the Year
Amanda Mulvey, RN/ EMT, Tipler Rescue
Here are some of the highlights from her nomination:
“Amanda is and always has been a great patient advocate, she is the voice of the patient when they are unable to speak for themselves or too fearful of the medical system to speak for themselves. In addition to being an advocate for the family.”
“Amanda continues to demonstrate a commitment to continuing education both in promoting within her squad but also for herself, she attends all CME opportunities she can to include in person learning, peer-to-peer learning, refreshers, and WEMSA conferences. She is a Teaching Assistant with NWTC in Green Bay for the EMS program and assists with the national registry exam as often as she can.“
“Amanda has been diligently working with a neighboring rescue squad to restructure this squad, she has been instrumental in raising the EMT/EMR base and has recruited and promoted EMS providers and students.”
“Amanda is truly the heart of the EMS community in her area, without her and her dedication there would be no Tipler Rescue. She deserves to be the EMT of the year!”
2021 WEMSA First Responder of the Year
Brian Ebert, EMR, Gordon- Wascott EMS
Here are some of the highlights from his nomination:
“Staffing is always a challenge when it comes to volunteer service and having a person who will show up and work at any capacity needed is deeply appreciated. Brian is always that guy.”
“Brian is an EMR for Gordon-Wascott EMS, and a Firefighter for the Town of Gordon, serves as Assistant Chief and Training Officer of Gordon Volunteer Fire Department. His selflessness and commitment to the community shows, as he consistently is one of the top 2 in total responses for the year with Gordon-Wascott EMS.”
“Civic-minded and highly respected by his peers, he is professional, has exceptional work ethics, and always represents the department in a positive light in public.”
“Day or night, we can always count on Brian.”
2021 WEMSA Physician of the Year
Dr. Jon Robinson, Physician, Chief & Medical Director, Elm Grove EMS
Here are some of the highlights from his nomination:
“When we first moved to Elm Grove over 30 years ago, the Village of Elm Grove only had the most basic of EMS services. Through my dad’s knowledge and leadership, the Village of Elm Grove is now lucky to have an abundance of services that are rare to have in the entire country. The Village now has Police that are now all at minimum EMT-Basics, with some even achieving EMT-Paramedic.”
“To further outdo the expectations of a typical Physician, my dad was one of the first Physicians to become a fully sworn Police Officer, working with Elm Grove Police and Walworth County Sheriff's Office where he also served as a member of the Walworth County SWAT team. He also has been a member of the Milwaukee Fire Department, serving on their HURT (Heavy Urban Rescue Team).”
“His empathy for Village residents during the COVID crisis stands out for his early intervention and willingness to set up a vaccination clinic for our "elderly village population" who otherwise might not be able to navigate the technology websites to sign up for vaccinations. It took incredible coordination with the State and considerable forethought, not to mention the countless hours he spent on the logistics of setting up the clinic.”
“The clinic organized by Dr. Robinson provided nearly 1000 immunizations (including second doses) over three months. The clinic was operated efficiently and all of the vaccine was put to use. As an article was prepared for the local paper, Dr. Robinson was insistent that the focus be on the contribution of volunteers. Not many people are aware of the hours of effort Dr. Robinson put in to make the clinics available to the community.”
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For more information about Wisconsin EMS Association call 414-431-8193 or visit www.wisconsinems.com
The Wisconsin EMS Association is a non-sectarian, non-profit organization open to all. We represent and support the views and interests of our membership by working together as Your Voice for EMS™ to promote education, share information, and facilitate legislative action.
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