STAT MedEvac Staff

The story of Freedom House Ambulance is little known to many, but it pioneered the forefronts of mobile emergency medical services in the start of the 1960s for public safety professionals. Founded in 1967, Freedom House Ambulance served Pittsburgh citizens in the Hill District and the Northside when national standards for ambulances and paramedics did not exist yet.

In a time where skills for a professional paramedic were nonexistent, Pittsburgh police officers provided ambulance service for the city by transporting patients in the back of the police cars. The revolution for better medical care was advanced by Phillip Hallen, president of The Faulk Foundation from 1963-1999, along with various dedicated helping hands. Freedom House Ambulance was designed to provide unemployed African Americans with careers through the help of Morton Coleman of the Pittsburgh mayor’s office and the University of Pittsburgh School of Social Work. At the time, Hallen involved James McCoy, president of […]

Women-led directors in EMS are few and far between in the public safety industry. For Nora Helfrich, RN, EMT-P, recently retired EMS director for Tri-Community South EMS, she worked her way up to become a leader in her organization, the state of Pennsylvania, and beyond.

Tri-Community South EMS was established in 1977 as the result of an effort to improve medical care in the communities of Bethel Park, South Park and Upper St. Clair in Pennsylvania.

Helfrich joined Tri-Community South EMS in 1980 and became the director in 2000. After a nearly 42-year colorful, stepping-stone EMS career, she retired in October 2021.

Early in her career, she started as a volunteer with Tri-Community South EMS and worked her way up until she held every position within the organization in the beginning as a part-time EMT to full-time EMT. From there, she attended a paramedic program at community college, graduated, and earned her […]

What exactly is community? A sense of belonging? An identity shared amongst your peers? Or this overabounding sense of unity under the veil of uplifting one another? In many ways, it is the combination of all three. As Veteran’s Day approaches, we transition into this sense of vulnerability, understanding that our daily struggles pale in comparison to the efforts of our soldiers, both domestic and abroad. Our peaceful existence is at the hands of the brave men and women who don our nation’s colors and fight in the name of our freedom. Our community hinges upon our security but this security also transcends to the homeland when these defenders of freedom return back to civilian life.  

At this intersection, is where we find Master Pilot Nick Hardy and his 30+ years of helicopter experience. Serving in the Army as a Pilot from 1990-2001, […]

Recently, local and EMS professionals from around the country attended Beyond the Street (BTS) Workshopto sharpen and enhance their leadership skillset. According to Anthony W. Minge, Ed.D., senior partner at Fitch & Associates, an emergency services consulting firm, cultivating leadership in the EMS industry is more important now than in any time in the history of the profession.

Recruitment and retention are trendy, top-of-mind topics in the industry. Top leaders are leaving the profession, because the old guard is retiring, but recruitment has not been replenishing at the same rate. Minge says, “We are losing a good amount of leadership from the people who  built this industry.”

“We have to fill that void and build up the people, either the ones climbing the ranks or just arriving in the industry,” Minge continues. “We bring professionals together nationwide to share their experience but also to master some of the basic management […]

The Commission on Accreditation of Medical Transport Systems is dedicated to improving the quality of patient care and safety of the transport environment.  Marion Jones, Flight Nurse, oversees the voluntary practices of maintaining the CAMTS standards. She explains why STAT MedEvac is dedicated to keeping this high standard.

Every year, the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) kicks off Fire Prevention Week by raising awareness for fire safety, promoting key safety messages, providing resources for kids of all ages as well as general, showcasing helpful information for best practices in fire safety. It’s the longest-running public health observance in the U.S.

Since 1922, The NFPA sponsors the observance of this week  starting on October 9 in commemoration of The Great Chicago Fire, which began on October 8, 1871. According to historical findings provided by the NFPA, the most famous fire in America killed more than 250 people, left 100,000 homeless, destroyed more than 17,400 structures, and burned more than 2,000 acres of land. To learn more, you can watch Lessons from History: The Chicago Fire of 1871 here.

According to National Geographic on The Great Chicago Fire and its rebuilding, a fire broke out in a barn on […]

by Sheila G. Roth, PhD, LCSW, EMT

Individuals working in EMS such as (EMT’s, paramedics, flight crews and others) put their lives on the line to serve people every day.  These roles present unique challenges and stressors to health care providers and to their families. Yet, they are dedicated and give their all to do this work. In times of increased work stress such as mass casualty incidents, community violence, critical incidents, or a pandemic, the risk to these individuals is even greater.  Interestingly, providers don’t always receive appreciation from the people that receive their help, in fact, many people don’t realize the emotional toll of this work on providers and their families. So how much of a toll can this take?  One survey published in The Journal of Emergency Medical Services (2016) asked EMT’s and paramedics if they had contemplated or attempted suicide. […]

A little more than 3 years ago, Gabe Diamond was working as a ground paramedic for the City of Pittsburgh EMS. He worked in an ER, as well as a few suburban EMS agencies, trying to learn more and build his experience at each place.

Fueled by the passion for a challenge, he applied to work for STAT MedEvac and was hired as a full-time flight paramedic. More pharmacology, interfacility patients, and helicopter operations were all part of the training with his mentor and preceptor, Joyce Fee.

He anticipated that making the change from ground medicine to air medicine would be difficult. The transition of working inside the confined space of an aircraft, vs. inside a more spacious ground ambulance, turned out to be more challenging than the clinical side.

As he got more comfortable, he realized how he might be able to streamline part of the job.  From pharmacology calculations to burn […]

On this episode, Greg Winkle, Fixed Base Manager, talks about the strict maintenance regimen of the fleet, why they have a mixed fleet of aircraft and the relationship between the flight crews, pilots and mechanical staff.