Daily Local News (West Chester, PA)
Hazel Stanton adds a touch of compassion to her EMS calls
COATESVILLE >> Imagine this all-too-common, but true, scenario: A 40-year old painter is on a scaffold, working on the side of a private residence in East Fallowfield Township, Chester County. Suddenly, he loses his balance and plunges 20 feet to the ground.
A 911 call is quickly place and, moments later, emergency providers from Modena Fire Company Ambulance and Medic 93, out of Brandywine Hospital, Tower Health, arrive on scene. The painter is semi-conscious, suffering from multiple injuries and possible internal bleeding. “Hello. sir,” says the paramedic warmly, “I am Hazel Stanton with Medic 93, I’ll be taking care of you.”
Stanton, a registered nurse with Medic 93, is the kind of person everyone would want aiding them in time of need.
“I tell every patient that they matter and treat them
in the same way I want to be treated,” said Stanton, who is one of the five original members of Medic 93, a paramedic unit based out of Brandywine Hospital, Tower Health, since 1982.
Stanton, 63, became a member of Medic 93 in unexpected fashion while working in the intensive care unit at Brandywine Hospital. One day the management team at Brandywine came to see her and, knowing she was a registered
nurse, inquired if she would be interested in becoming a staff member on Medic 93. “I did not know what a paramedic did,” recalls Stanton, “or for that matter, what advanced life support meant. I was petrified . I thought about it for awhile. Finally, I said okay. I will give it a try. Fortunately, I had two new paramedics that took me under their wings and explained everything to me and I felt comfortable after that.”
Medic 93 is a non-transport, ALS (advanced life support) squad. Its role is to assist 13 neighboring ambulance agencies which perform both basic life support (BLS) services (nonlife-threatening emergencies) and transport.
She enjoys working with her co-workers at Medic 93, affectionately known as “family members,” In fact, she said, “I consider Leo, (chief of Medic 93), my brother.”
In the years she has been on the medic unit, Stanton has seen a lot of action. Medic 93 responds to over 5,500 emergencies annually. 25 percent of which are pediatric.
“I get particular satisfaction in making children well again,” she said. “However, there have been times, when I have not been fortunate. To be honest, I go home and cry. Then, I think, I did the best that I could. So, afterwards, I call my children, and tell them that I love them.”
On the bright side, Stanton, both a mother and grandmother, has seen changes in the advancements of medical equipment and medications used on patients who have experienced a heart issue or a stroke.
“The advancements in the health field are amazing and impressive. You are seeing more people walking out of the hospital than before,” she said.
Stanton was born in West Caln, grew up with three sisters and a brother, and now lives in a house next to where she was raised. She was an active youngster and teenager, spending much of her time bicycle riding, swimming, playing basketball and hockey.
An early influence on her career choice was her mother, who worked as a nurse at the former Atkinson Hospital in Coatesville and later at Embreeville Hospital. Stanton attended Coatesville School of Nursing where she received her diploma and then attended Immaculata University in Malvern, where she received her Bachelor of Nursing degree.
Once she became a registered nurse, Stanton joined the nursing staff at Brandywine Hospital, working in the departments of OBGYN, maternity, the emergency room, intensive care unit, short procedure, recovery room, home health care and pediatrics.
“No matter what department I am in, I am there for the patient,” she said. “The patient is sick, scared. I come into the room with a smile. Hopefully putting the patient at ease”