John Commander. (Photo courtesy San Bernardino County Fire Department)

John Commander, a longtime emergency medical providers coaching officer and coordinator on the San Bernardino County Fire Department, has been awarded a state Distinguished Service Medal for extraordinary contributions to the EMS area.

Commander was amongst 43 EMS professionals statewide honored in May by the California Emergency Medical Services Authority for important contributions to the EMS area.

“Commander demonstrates heart and soul in everything he does and his commitment to procedures and protocols,” the state company stated in saying the honour.

Among these additionally receiving the Distinguished Service Medal had been Jennifer Antonucci of Murrieta Fire & Rescue and Phong Nguyen of the Redlands Fire Department.

Commander, a veteran of 47 years within the area, acquired his begin in EMS by passing a primary support class as a Boy Scout and shortly turned an teacher for the scouts and finally for the Red Cross and the American Heart Association. He went on to turn into an EMT and a paramedic, finally becoming a member of San Bernardino County Fire in 1990.

Besides his work for San Bernardino County Fire, Commander is a member of and coaching officer for the San Bernardino County-based CA-2 Disaster Medical Assistance Team, which deploys to disasters as a part of the National Disaster Medical System in coordination with the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services.

He’s taught on the state’s California Specialized Training Institute; and at FEMA’s National Fire Academy and its Center for Domestic Preparedness. Commander can be an EMS/Fire Technology adjunct teacher at Crafton Hills College in Yucaipa, and an adjunct school member in Fire Technology on the College of the Desert in Palm Desert.

Commander has seen adjustments over the many years within the area, some associated to new expertise. For occasion, the follow of airway administration entails inserting a tube down a affected person’s throat or by means of their nostril. If carried out incorrectly, there could also be issues sustaining the airway. Newer methods make use of a tool to see the change of air by means of the tube.

“So we now confirm placement as far as respiratory rate and volume,” he stated. “We can actually see what’s happening with the patient, where in the past it was hit-and-miss.”

Recommendations on how folks ought to carry out CPR throughout emergencies, whereas emergency assistance is on the best way, have additionally modified through the years.

“We try to encourage you to sing various songs that basically keep you there (at the correct rate of compression),” Commander stated. “A couple of songs come to mind, obviously the Bee Gees’ song (Stayin’ Alive), which is about 100 beats per minute. But then again, we’re also teaching kids. So the Baby Shark song, it’s 108 beats per minute.”

We lately requested Commander about his dedication to emergency medical providers and about two points dealing with the sphere: drug overdoses and homelessness.

Question: Why is emergency medical providers so essential to you?

Answer

I’m simply one in every of many who make up the collective and the factor is I’m going to verify I cross on what I’ve discovered through the years to assist folks turn into higher paramedics (and) first responders.

Quite a lot of applications will train you easy methods to do issues, however they don’t train you the why or the explanation behind it. So I’m the one which fills within the hole of the why. And that manner they’ve a comprehension. And what’s good about that’s once I see college students get the idea, the imaginary mild bulb goes on or there’s the “aha”  second. That’s the important thing for me. Yeah. It’s like, “Oh my God, they got it!”

Question: How has the emergency medical providers system handled and helped with the surge of drug overdoses?

Answer

We’ve seen some adjustments so far as how we cope with that.

We have a few applications now accessible. Number one is that our dosage of Narcan has elevated. (For that) fentanyl is the most important one which we’re coping with. Also, now after we go on calls that we’ve an overdose, both unintended or intentional, we now have a program that’s been approved by the state.  A grant was offered permits mainly regulation enforcement, hearth and EMS folks to go away Narcan behind.

After we look after the individual, for relations or mates of this particular person who simply overdosed, we go away them a field of Narcan with just-in-time coaching. So it helps a little bit bit as a result of the entire goal of why we’re giving Narcan is to purchase time and to reverse the hostile results of the narcotic that they’ve taken.

Because what normally occurs is after we get referred to as to 911, there’s a timeframe wherever between 8 to 10 minutes or so earlier than we get there and through that point, nobody’s doing something. And if we don’t reverse that drug rapidly, they are going to die. So if we are able to get somebody there, a primary responder, or perhaps a citizen may give Narcan and if needed, observe up with a hands-on CPR.

Question: How has the emergency medical providers neighborhood handled the rise in homelessness?

Answer

It has elevated over the past couple of years. As you’ll be able to inform, every metropolis has their very own little encampments per se, particularly close to the highways and freeways and issues like that or deserted buildings. Obviously that poses a well being danger in sure areas and clearly a well being danger to these folks in these encampments as a result of that is the place illness and and issues can unfold amongst them as a result of (of an absence of fine hygiene).

So that’s one concern. The different is overdoses as a result of now you’ve individuals who go and discover their favourite narcotic wherever they could get it from, come again and overdose. And then we’re referred to as in. And then the opposite factor is a security hazard. In a few of these encampments, clearly, they construct warming fires or cooking fires and generally these get out of hand and issues get burnt, reminiscent of wildland areas, bushes and parks in addition to properties.

Our company has a program for the homeless to test on them (with regulation enforcement) such because the Sheriff’s Department and Fontana PD.

They have an individual who’s form of like a social employee, however is clearly a police officer from the regulation enforcement facet. And we’ve personnel from our division which are skilled and likewise carrying medical luggage. So they do spot checks or well being wellness checks on these homeless encampments to see how they’re doing (and test on their wants).

So then that data is shared with numerous organizations. For instance, sanitation, meals assets, finance, you recognize to plug them in. So mainly they sort of spend a while with these folks to supply them potential help. Now, sadly, you’ll be able to cause them to water, however you’ll be able to’t drive them to drink. So they’ve data that they cross out and share. They even have (needle) sharps containers that they offer them. So that manner they’ll put them there and if they’ve any sharps for no matter purpose, put it in there after which go away it at a delegated location the place they are often picked at. So nobody can unintentionally get caught. But it’s unlucky that we nonetheless have this in our society. It is a common drawback and it’s truly everybody’s drawback, not simply hearth, EMS and regulation enforcement — it’s truly the cities, the counties and the way they cope with it.