The Hemingford Volunteer Fire Department has purchased some new, life-saving equipment, after they received a $15,000 grant from Farm Credit Services.
Barb Keegan, EMS Captain with the Hemingford Volunteer Fire Department, said the grant was awarded to aid in the purchase of two new defibrillators for the department. The equipment is already in service.
“Each defib, the way we have it set up, is $41,267.94 each,” said Keegan. “It was built for us. It benefits the community and the people we serve, more so than it does the department. For the department, we have a lot more features on this. We’ll be able to do blood gases, which is carbon monoxide. It’ll be able to pick up events as they are being built. On certain things, it’ll record 15 seconds prior and 15 seconds afterward. There’s just so many more things we can do.”
Keegan explained the devices will provide more accurate readings than the defibrillators they had in service. They will also be able to use the devices in pediatrics if needed. The devices also offer more patient comfort as readings are being taken.
“It’s just a lot more advanced technology,” Keegan said. “One thing we can also do, that we haven’t been able to do with our old one, the strip that will give the blood pressure, the heart rate, the temperature, pulse oximetry, irregular rhythms and all that, we’ll be able to drop that into the hospital before we even get there. Right now, on our calls, we call in advance to let them know what our vitals are. If we have a cardiac, all we have to do is push a button to send everything to the appropriate hospital.”
These machines can also monitor brain activity in cases of traumatic brain injury, Keegan explained.
The Hemingford Fire District has more than 900 square miles that it covers, Keegan said.
“We’ve been running 120 EMS calls annually,” said Keegan. “So, we’ve got a lot of miles to cover. Not only do we tier with Alliance, but we also tier with Chadron, and we can tier with AirLink, or Valley Ambulance.”
Keegan said that even with the advancements in technology, it all depends on the EMT to be able to save lives.
“It all goes back to the EMT, though,” Keegan said. “Without the basic skills of the EMT, this equipment doesn’t do anything.”
Marlaleta Pehoviack, EMS Captain, said the leaps in technology have been significant since 2012, the year the previous defibrillators were integrated in the department.
“The increases in the innovations are so advanced,” said Pehoviack.
Samantha Grimes, Insurance Officer with Farm Credit Services, said she is grateful the department applied for the grant, and encouraged other organizations to apply for grants through Farm Credit Services.
“I’m glad they were awarded,” said Grimes. “There are three tiers of grants, and depending on your need and size, you can apply.”