The Blaine County Journal News-Opinion - We've Got The County Covered

Donnie and Bonnie Harmon, long-time members of the Big Flat’s Blaine II Ambulance Crew, will receive Montana’s 2016 EMS Providers of the Year Award at a ceremony at the state capitol on Thursday, May 19. The Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services honors selected Emergency Medical Service providers and facilities during the annual ceremony, a part of National EMS Week activities. Individuals from around the state make written nominations for the awards and a committee makes the final selection. The Harmons heard they received the award just a couple of weeks ago.

Steve Leitner, Crew Chief for Blaine II Ambulance Crew, wrote the letter recommending the couple for the award. In his letter, Leitner noted, “The Harmons are true EMS leaders in their community. Donnie was a founding member of the Blaine II crew in Turner in 1977 and Bonnie joined the crew as a responder in 1980. Bonnie was chief for over 20 years and just recently retired from that role.” Leitner explained he made a dual nomination because “the husband and wife EMT team have made our service what it is today.”

By phone the Harmons shared some of the highlights of their four decades with the volunteer ambulance service. Donnie explained, “Our area got a hand-me-down ambulance from Chinook. That same year six of us took the first EMT (Emergency Medical Technician) course offered at what was then Fort Belknap College. A group of doctors with IHS put the course together.” The first crew was Jim Jenks, Sara Johnson, Leneus Erickson, Otis Jonson, Bill Dunlop and Harmon. Donnie added, “The equipment was bare bones, we had to do fundraisers to equip the ambulance we were given.”

In 1976 the county commissioners saw the importance of an ambulance service in the north country and bought a ‘demonstrator’ ambulance for the Big Flat crew. Bonnie Harmon took a first responder course, in 1980, which qualified her to serve with the ambulance crew. In 1983 an EMT course was offered in Harlem and Bonnie became a certified EMT. Bonnie told, “Colleen Overcast and I became certified lead EMT instructors and we held classes all over the region.” The nomination letter stated the two instructors trained more than 100 EMT’s for area ambulance crews.

Asked about the changes they saw in four decades of emergency care, they both agreed CPR (Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation—artificial breathing and circulation for a victim) has gone through major changes and is still changing. Bonnie was an American Heart Association instructor trainer, training others to certify responders, and saw a lot of new developments in that area. And they both said the different levels of training also proliferated over the years—from basic first aid responders to all sorts of levels of EMT certifications and on to paramedics.

Donnie added, “I remember in the first training class the instructor said, ‘you will learn to help people without needing equipment.’” Donnie noted how that has changed as very sophisticated medical equipment has been added to ambulances and volunteers have to be trained, and certified, to use the new technology. Bonnie said another change was how patients are now ‘packaged’ for transport. She explained, “Early on the emphasis was to quickly get the patient to a hospital. Over the years it became practice to better prepare patients for transport, for both comfort and to avoid additional injury during transport.”

The biggest reward from all the years of training and ambulance runs, they both agreed, was the fact they learned skills to save lives. Donnie said, “I believe the skills I developed did help save some lives, and that’s a great feeling.”

Both commented about the difficulties with knowing most of the victims they were called to help or treat. They said, “In a small community you either know the person you’re treating or know their family. Sometimes it’s hard to get by the emotional part of seeing an accident or illness because you know the victim. As a responder, you have to put that aside and use your skills to render aid. And when you realize there’s nothing you can do to help a victim, that’s especially hard to deal with.”

The Harmons are planning to officially retire from the ambulance crew in March, 2017. Donnie explained, “That’s when most of our certifications will lapse. We don’t plan to recertify.” But they both added they plan to stay involved with the Blaine II Ambulance Crew. Bonnie said, “We’ll still be involved to help and support, but not be a part of the active caregivers on the ambulance.”

At last year’s awards ceremony one of the speakers said, “On average, Montana residents will need an ambulance service at least twice in his or her life time.” Today, over 3,300 EMT’s and paramedics serve through a network of 265 EMS services across Montana. Thankfully there are people like the Harmons who continue to step up to provide emergency care in rural areas.

The “Journal” salutes all the emergency care volunteers during National EMS Week and congratulates the Harmons for this statewide recognition of their role in founding and being an integral part of the Big Flat ambulance crew for forty years. Well done.