By Brian Gehring
The Bismark Tribune
BISMARK, N.D. — There is little question people in rural areas rely on volunteers more so than those in urban areas of the country.
In states like North Dakota with an aging population, finding those volunteers can be a difficult task.
Volunteer ambulance squads are one of the services that rural residents count on, and oftentimes, members are stretched thin.
But in communities like Washburn, college and high school students are stepping in to fill the void.
The Washburn ambulance service has five high school students serving on its squad, plus a couple of college students who come home to take calls when they can.
Mark Lelm, squad leader for the service, said there are 23 members on the Washburn service along with the seven students.
“In a lot of cases, their parents are or were members,” Lelm said. “So they know how important it is to be involved.”
That’s the case for Kelsea and Andrew Kuch. Their parents, Paul and Tracy, served on the squad and it’s something they feel strongly about.
Andrew Kuch is an ag engineering student at North Dakota State University and Kelsea Kuch is a nursing student at Bismarck State College. Between them, they have more than seven years with the squad.
Both began taking shifts on the squad in high school. At the minimum, Lelm said student squad members must be CPR certified, and in some cases, some have additional training like first responder.
Washburn is a basic life support service in which once a patient is stabilized, they transport them to a medical facility for treatment.
Lelm said once the students complete their orientation, they sign an agreement with the high school that allows them to leave the school grounds to respond to a call.
“The school district has been very supportive,” Lelm said. “The system is working for us.”
Statewide, there is a concern about the number of people available to staff volunteer ambulance services.
Mark Weber of Rugby is the president of the executive board of directors for the state EMS association.
Weber said about 80 percent of North Dakota’s ambulance services are staffed by volunteers.
He said there are no records of how many people served in past year, but he estimates it’s about half of what it once was.
“We have a handful of squads in the state that are covering with just two or three people,” he said. “Those people put in two to three thousand hours a year.”
For Tara Wilkens of Bismarck, volunteering while a high school student was a natural fit as she went on to earn her nursing degree.
Wilkens attended Center-Stanton High School and began on the ambulance squad at the urging of her mother, Kim.
Wilkens said at that time, she was uncertain about what she wanted to do after high school.
“I ended up loving it and that’s what drove me to nursing,” she said.
After graduating in 2003, she attended Jamestown College, then worked more than a year at St. Mary’s Hospital in Rochester, Minn., as an intensive care nurse.
She moved back to North Dakota and now works as an emergency room nurse at St. Alexius Medical Center.
Even if today’s students may not have an interest in a medical career, Wilkens would strongly recommend volunteering on their local ambulance squads.
“It taught me a lot,” she said. “It definitely looks good on a college or job application in any field.” But Wilkens said there is more to it than that.
She still takes calls on her days off. It’s a good reason to go home and visit family and friends, she said. “I figure if I can be there and help, why not?”
Wilkens said the payback for her was being able to help people get the care they needed “and help them get back home. ... I loved my job as an EMT ... not just the job, but being a part of a team and a part of the community.”
Weber said there have been some recent developments to provide help for ambulance services in rural communities.
He said the 2009 Legislature set aside $500,000 to implement four EMS improvement programs - one is an eight-month recruitment plan set to begin in January.
He said in the past year, 33 services received funding through the state EMS service to help offset costs. “But money alone is not the solution,” he said. “There are multiple things that come into play.”
The state’s population is getting older and many of the state’s youth are opting to leave their small hometowns, leaving a smaller pool of people to draw from.
“The spirit of volunteerism is disappearing also,” Weber said.
For smaller communities like Washburn and Center, they have learned to work with what they have.
Kristi Stevens is a high school senior at Washburn who would like to attend medical school.
She was prompted to join the squad after a presentation from two members at her school.
“I think it will be great experience getting out there working with people,” Stevens said.
Mary Devlin, Washburn’s ambulance secretary, said they have come to depend on the student members for a variety of reasons.
Around this time of the year, it adds to the number of people who are available to take calls and eases the load on the entire squad.
With one driver and one person in the back of the rig, a third set of eyes, ears and hands is beneficial.
“It’s a huge relief to have that third person. It makes a big difference,” Devlin said.
“At the very least, we have five more people who know CPR.”
Copyright 2009 The Bismarck Tribune