For the Reporter
King County Emergency Medical Services (EMS) recently honored Valley Communications Center call receiver Wendy Glover for her sustained exemplary performance and exemplary handling of a critical incident.
“Congratulations to this year’s winner, and a heartfelt thanks to all 911 dispatchers for the calm way they go about the business of saving lives by helping people through crises,” said King County Executive Dow Constantine.
“We are very proud of Wendy and Valley Communications Center,” said Auburn Mayor Pete Lewis. “This is a wonderful opportunity to recognize the unsung heroes that staff our 911 system.”
Part of King County’s EMS/Medic One system, emergency medical dispatchers protect the public’s health and safety with critical medical advice to callers and by making quick decisions about the best emergency medical care.
Glover received a call from a distraught female indicating her friend was unresponsive. She quickly established and confirmed the address where help was needed and then did not waiver in her pursuit of determining the immediate medical emergency.
Within 32 seconds, Glover recognized the caller was reporting a cardiac arrest.
According to Valley Com, Glover calmed the caller and persuaded her to act. She took control of the call while still being empathetic and professional – reassuring the caller, “You can do this!” … I’m going to give you instructions step by step.”
Glover recognized the critical importance of getting compressions started as quickly as possible, providing the caller the assistance in performing the life-saving effort. Her swift and prompt action coupled with her ability to remain focused was a key component in this resuscitation effort.
“Emergency Medical Dispatchers evaluate patient signs and symptoms and provide life-saving medical instructions to bystanders over the telephone. Their contribution to the medical care provided to our residents and the subsequent increased survival from cardiac arrest is enormous,” said Mickey Eisenberg, MD, medical director for King County Emergency Medical Services Division of Public Health – Seattle & King County.
Valley Communications provides police, fire and medical dispatching in South King County, including the Auburn Police Department and Valley Regional Fire Authority, managing approximately 65,000 emergency medical calls in 2012.
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