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Wash. EMT has certification suspended after failing to enroll in monitoring program

The Adams County EMT had admitted to a substance abuse problem during an investigation into an altercation during a possible overdose call

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Washington State Department of Health/Facebook

Columbia Basin Herald

ADAMS COUNTY, Wash. — An Adams County emergency medical technician has had her license suspended for unprofessional conduct following her failure to enroll in a monitoring program.

Aimee Francis-Marie Striffler was required to enroll in a monitoring program by early 2024 but didn’t sign the contract, according to a press release from the Washington Department of Health. Her license was suspended Jan. 8.

Striffler was required to join the monitoring program after a January 2023 incident. Striffler responded to a call regarding a possible overdose with two fellow EMTs, but a relative of the patient, called Patient A, objected to her presence at the scene. The relative said he believed Stiffler and Patient A had used drugs together earlier that day, the report said.

“There was a verbal altercation between Patient A’s husband and Respondent. Respondent left the scene,” the DOH report said.

Talking with her supervisor the next day, Stiffler allegedly said she had used a substance to get high about three weeks earlier, according to the report.

“An EMT riding in the ambulance (on the day of incident) believes the Respondent was impaired that day due to Respondent’s behavior. The EMT stated Respondent was fidgety and physically unable to remain still when they were transporting a patient,” it said.

A second EMT also noticed signs of possible impairment.

“The EMT stated respondent appeared scatterbrained and jittery,” the report said. “Respondent admits to a substance use problem and is seeking help for this.”

Striffler was ordered in December 2023 to enroll in a DOH-designated monitoring program, which required a substance abuse evaluation and treatment plan if necessary. However, she never signed the contract with the monitoring program.

Department of Health officials charged her with unprofessional conduct in October 2024 , and her EMT credentials were suspended Jan. 3 . The suspension remains in effect even if Striffler asks for reconsideration, according to the DOH report.

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