Collegiate Times

It is hard to envision a job in which every day you wake up to the harsh realities of pain, physical and mental strain, and not knowing if, despite your attempts to remedy every emergency situation, the day could end in death. Now imagine not even getting paid for this job yet loving every minute of it just the same. These are just a few of the admirable qualities of the members of the Blacksburg Volunteer Rescue Squad.

With the end of the National Emergency Medical Service Week coming to a close this Saturday, Virginia Tech was able to reflect on the hard work and dedication provided across America by EMS staff everywhere.

The Blacksburg Volunteer Rescue Squad celebrated the honorable tradition of EMS week with an open house Sunday that hosted a blood drive, tours of the squad house and ambulances and demonstrations on different types of difficult situations the squad faces day-to-day, such as the extrication of vehicles.

The Blacksburg Rescue Squad, initially called the Volunteer Life Saving and First Aid Crew, began in 1950 with a mere 25 members. In its first year it received just 96 emergency calls and their only transportation for these services was a Chevrolet Truck. Progress was made in 1971 with the purchase of their first ambulance and yet again 10 years later when the Progress Street Station was built.

Today, the squad responds to an average of over 2,000 calls a year and consists of over 100 members.

Operational Officer and Chief Sid Bingley recalls that most people don?t realize all members are volunteers and the squad does not charge for their services. ?Every other county charges an average of $300-$800 for each response to a call,? Bingley said. He also stresses the fact that the Blacksburg Rescue Squad is separate from the Virginia Tech Rescue Squad, and contentedly serves the Town of Blacksburg and Montgomery County.

Volunteers at the squad range from high school students and Virginia Tech undergraduates to local town members. Lucian Mirra, a member of the Junior Rescue Squad is still in high school, yet is already a state certified emergency medical technician. At such a young age, he has already been exposed to various obstacles of the job. ?The hardest part of the job is the reality of facing people you know in emergency situations,? said Mirra.

Other members at the open house on Sunday were eager to express their opinions on the services they provide for the community. Vasanti Tamka Ballinger, a recent graduate of Virginia Tech, and current member of the rescue squad for over two years, recalled a story at the open house of a time the squad had to extricate a vehicle that had someone trapped in it during a flash flood. Traumas such as this are not uncommon, and do not prevent her and others from successfully helping the community.

?Members of the community should not be hesitant or scared to call in the case of an emergency,? said Ballinger. Despite the difficulties she must face daily, Ballinger continues to volunteer up to 16 hours a week on top of her full-time job as an information technology consultant. ?We just want everyone to know that we are here because we like it,? Ballinger said. Although EMS began as a means by which those involved in emergency accidents could receive care, the service has grown to be so much more today. EMS week recognizes the important of the history of EMS and its future by bringing together civilians and medical technicians across the nation to promote safety. EMS week is also very much about giving thanks and recognition to those who donate so much of their time to providing emergency services for the general public.

With the emergence of EMS in America just 50 years ago, development has come a long way. EMS all started in the 1950s when Dr. J.D. Farrington, currently known as the ?Father of modern EMS,? decided that the ambulance style medical attention used during wars should be applied to everyday life for civilians.

Most hospitals at this time were not adequately arranged for emergency situations, and catered only to pre-scheduled appointments. Those injured in emergency situations were actually driven to the hospital in hearses, as ambulances did not yet exist.

Progress began to be made when Farrington and Dr. Sam Banks created a school within the Chicago Fire Department dedicated to educating members about emergency situations and solutions. This very school later invented the first-ever class devoted to training EMTs on the proper utilization of ambulances and other related emergency trauma tools. Twenty-five years later the National Association of EMTs was developed and we have celebrated EMS week ever since.