The community of Forks is served by a unique brand of Emergency Medical Services, we are a Hospital based Ambulance service whose crews also work within the Hospital. Forks Ambulance has a long history of serving the Forks community, from volunteers using their own vehicles to transport patients to the present day.
The core of the EMS agency is the Ray Ellis Memorial Volunteer Ambulance Corps or REMVAC for short. These volunteers have devoted their own time to train and respond to medical emergencies. We train to the King County EMS standards, each month we hold training on current practices and new procedures.
As a hospital-based EMS agency, we will respond to the residence or incident scene, care for and transport the patient, stay with the patient in the ER and assist the Dr and Nurses there. If the patient is admitted, our EMT’s also work inside the hospital as aides to the Dr’s and Nurses.
This provides a higher level of care for those patients that return to the hospital or need EMS services at their residence, as we are familiar with the patient, their history and their needs. There are 3 full-time EMT/ER Techs and 20 per diem EMT volunteers. Currently, 8 of those volunteers are in training to receive their Advanced EMT rating. When they graduate, REMVAC will have 15 Advanced EMT’s on the roster.
Our EMT volunteers are the backbone of the service; they work the late shifts, responds from home, in the middle of the night, away from the dinner table, on holidays and weekends. At all times of the day or night, someone is listening for the call, and they are ready to respond.
They will respond to the Hospital in their own vehicle, a green blinking light will identify them as responding to an emergency. So if you see a green light behind you, and you can safely move to the side, please do so. We work closely with the Fire Dept. and Police Dept. in being prepared for any emergency response that may arise.
REMVAC has trained with and responded with the National Park Service, Dept. of Natural Resources, LaPush Police, Clallam County Sheriff’s Office, Washington State Patrol, Forks Police Dept., Forks Fire Dept., Quileute Valley School District, the FBI, Quileute Fish and Wildlife, Clallam Bay Fire, Neah Bay Fire and many others in the Northwest Healthcare Network. We have transported patients as far away as Spokane, Seattle, Bellingham, Sequim, Aberdeen and many other places as well.
If you want to be a part of this dynamic family, contact the Forks Community Hospital and ask for the Ambulance Department, we will be holding an EMT basic course in late August.
Timothy T. Wade | Ambulance Supervisor / REMVAC Liaison
Disclaimer: This column is not intended as a diagnosis or recommended treatment of a specific condition. Answers are not a replacement for an individual medical evaluation. Individual health concerns should be evaluated by a licensed clinician.
