EMS squad celebrates 20th anniversary
Looking back on the establishment of the organization in 1995
Twenty-three years ago, paramedics responding to the most serious type of cardiac emergency were at a distinct disadvantage. Their equipment didn’t allow them to identify the specific site in the heart where the problem lay in order to administer appropriate treatment.
“I worked with a three-lead electrocardiogram monitor,” recalled Michael Palamar, who is today chief of operations for Southern Berks Regional Emergency Medical Services, Inc.. “and I couldn’t view the whole heart and pinpoint where the cardiac issue was occurring. Now, we use a 12-lead monitor which shows the whole heart. We can quickly determine where the problem is and the type of cardiac emergency we are facing,” he explained. This is particularly valuable when dealing with a STEMI (ST seg-
ment elevation myocardial infarction), which is a complete blockage of blood flow to the heart and requires timely treatment. “If this procedure is done correctly,” said Palamar, “the patient would most likely have a positive outcome.”
This year, Southern Berks Regional Emergency Medical Services, Inc. is observing the 20th anniversary of its founding in 1995. The dramatic improvement in emergency care technology, as exemplified by its treatment of STEMI episodes, is perhaps the most significant advance that Southern Berks REMS has seen in its 20-year-history, noted Palarmar.
Another important advance in the history of the squad was the merger which brought about the establishment of the organization in 1995. In that year, three independently operating area ambulance associations — Birdsboro Community Ambulance, Governor Miff lin Area Ambulance and Southern Berks Paramedic—joined forces to become the present Southern Berks Regional Medical Services, Inc.
Prior to the merger, said Palamar, “when a lifethreatening emergency call came in, either for Birdsboro or Governor Mifflin, they had to rely on Southern Berks Medics to assist in that type of emergency because neither of the earlier squads was certified to perform advanced life support intervention. “Thanks to the merger, the first of its kind among ambulance associations in Pennsylvania, “our emergency service treatment has been taken up a notch. Now, Southern Berks — a certified ALS squad — is a single unified organization capable of handling calls that the earlier Birdsboro and Governor Mifflin squads could not handle.”
Presently, Southern Berks operates out of three stations: one on Mountain View Road in Reading, a 2nd in Birdsboro and a 3rd in Douglasville Borough. Palamar pointed out that, because of the crucial geographic location of the Douglassville station, response time to emergency calls in Amity and Union Townships has improved markedly in recent years.
Southern Berks REMS’s service area include Amity, Brecknock, Cumru, Robeson and Union Townships and Birdsboro, Kenhorst, Mohnton and Shillington Boroughs. The squad’s 40 career members respond to over 6000 emergency calls annually and also provide non-emergency transportation.