Shawano Ambulance was organized in 1966 to meet the need for a local emergency medical transport service. Previously, the funeral homes were called upon to provide transport primarily due to the fact that they had a vehicle suited to transporting a person in a supine position. However, they understandably had no responsibility to respond to accidents or medical emergencies, and at times of need mi
ght be unavailable or would require a rather long time to arrive. Interestingly, the first ambulance vehicle in Shawano was a used hearse retrofitted to serve in a medical transport capacity. The first ambulance ‘crews’ consisted mainly of persons who had the fortitude to respond to what could sometimes be considered very unpleasant situations. Training was non-existent or minimal at best, and early on, both crewmembers would ride in the front seat as they drove pell-mell to the hospital with the unattended patient lying in the rear of the car. It wasn’t until 1969 that formalized training was even available for what were referred to as “ambulance attendants.” That very first year several individuals from Shawano completed the 81 hour course. As subtle as it sounds, their willingness to learn the latest methods and use the best information available would set the stage for an organization that has been very progressive ever since. Fast forward to 1985, when the State of Wisconsin recognized the need for advanced levels of care in areas other than the metropolitan centers. Since the gravity of the paramedic level of care necessitated full time personnel, it was more-or-less only available in the big cities. The State created a hybrid curriculum called the Emergency Medical Technician – Intermediate that introduced advanced skills which could be performed by personnel that were still predominantly volunteer or part time. Shawano Ambulance Service (SAS) was a test site for that program, successfully piloting it for the State. For the next thirteen years, it was the standard many rural areas strived to attain. Once again, in 1997-98, SAS was a test-bed for yet another Wisconsin pilot program which gleaned the most frequently used skills and medications from the paramedic program and delivered them to the newly created EMT-Enhanced program. In January of 2003, SAS upgraded to the paramedic level. Special exceptions to the standard scope of practice took over a year to get State approval and were written into the original protocols to allow SAS paramedics to do additional skills. By 2005, the number of special exceptions had grown, and all paramedics completed the Critical Care Transport training curriculum to give them the knowledge and tools to manage very acutely ill or critically injured patients for extended periods of time. Today, SAS is the only 911 ambulance service in the State of Wisconsin that requires all of its paramedics to be full time employees and maintain Critical Care Transport credentials. “The responsibility of the critical care paramedic role is tremendous. We want our personnel to have the knowledge and experience to care for our patients in the best way possible. It is no secret, that when you do something as your career, you are much better at it” commented Pat Trinko, Director of Operations at SAS. Ironically, 911 Ambulance providers in the large cities like Green Bay, Appleton, Wausau and even Milwaukee do not provide this level of advanced care.
∙The Service maintains five ambulances in its Shawano station, located on Fifth Street.
∙The station is staffed with either two or three crews, twenty four hours a day, seven days a week. When things get busy, off duty personnel are called in to provide additional coverage.
∙SAS will respond to approximately 2,700 requests for service this year.
∙Primary response area includes nine townships, three villages (Bonduel, Cecil and Gresham) and the City of Shawano.
∙In addition to 911 requests, SAS performs paramedic intercepts for outlying ambulances and inter-hospital transports throughout the state.
∙Free CPR training is provided to the public several times each year, as well as free child passenger seat inspections by certified inspectors.
∙The Service is currently piloting a “community paramedic” program which involves field providers personnel more in impacting the ongoing health and wellness of the local population.
