Letters

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Send Letters to the Editor to:
Mail: EMS, 7626 Densmore Ave., Van Nuys, CA 91406-2042
E-mail: Nancy.Perry@cygnusb2b.com
Letters may be edited for clarity and space.

Drivers Wanted…to Stay Safe

I want to thank and commend the staff of EMS Magazine for a great publication. I look forward to receiving every issue, and read it from cover to cover, often twice.

I am a paramedic for Jan-Care Ambulance Service, the largest privately owned and operated ambulance service in the state of West Virginia, and have been for more than 20 years. I have seen many changes in the areas of patient care and transportation.

For the past several years I have been charged with instructing our employees in emergency vehicle driving and operations. This is a subject that unfortunately goes unnoticed and/or unmentioned in many services. I would be interested in seeing more articles concerning this matter.

As we all know, we can’t take care of a patient unless we arrive by their side safely. The notion of drive hard, show up fast is a thing of the past. We must constantly be aware of what is going on around us as we drive our ambulances.

My class has developed over time into one designed not to teach our employees how to drive so much as how not to drive. I am always looking for ideas and information to use in my classes and am interested in learning how other services in different areas instruct their operators in emergency vehicle driving.

If anyone would like to share or trade ideas, please contact me at hvass@jancare.com. Maybe we can all work together to make an en route ambulance a safer environment for everyone.

Homer H. Vass, Paramedic
CEVO-II Instructor
Jan-Care Ambulance Service
Beckley, WV

The Skinny on Fitness

Thank you for the publisher’s editorial, Survival of the Fittest, in the May issue. I have been overweight most of my life, and obese a great part of that time. I appreciate that you are encouraging people to take action to change the bad habits that we develop in this industry. Daily, we see people suffering from problems caused by obesity and smoking, yet many of us do nothing to change our own situations.

On April 1, 2005, I made a decision that changed my life: I walked through the doors of Weight Watchers. Not only am I 20 lbs. lighter now, but my uniforms are too big on me and my self-esteem has increased 10-fold. The program and the people helped me learn how to plan around a job that can change at any moment, and they’ve been the best support I’ve ever had.

The biggest thing anyone who wants to change their weight needs to remember is that you have to change your lifestyle, and you have to WANT it for yourself—and for no other reason. There are no excuses. If you have a thyroid condition like I do (I’ve been battling my thyroid since I was 14), get tested and get meds.

Again, thanks for what you said about fitness. I really enjoy reading things that help me not only in my job, but in my life as well.
Anonymous