Medic2medic Podcast

Episode 256 is Christy Warren. Christy is a retired Fire Captain from the Berkeley (California) Fire Department. She has twenty-five years of service as a professional paramedic, with seventeen years as a professional firefighter. Christy shares her amazing journey with us and her battle with PTSD. Christy talks about her suicidal thoughts and what started her recovery. Christy is candid about her struggles and you want to hear her story. When Christy is not swimming from Alcatraz, Christy is the host of the podcast The Firefighter Deconstructed.

Episode 255 is Executive Director Jeff Kelly and Chief Josh Worth from Medical Rescue Team South Authority (MRTSA). Both have extensive EMS experience as providers, educators, and leaders, as you will hear in the podcast. Both were born in the Pittsburgh area with strong Western PA EMS ties came to MRTSA in 2021 to bring a new direction to the organization. Jeff and Josh talk about the roles, changes, leadership, and the pride they have in MRTSA. You will also hear how they make a good team leading MRTSA into the future.

Episode 254 is Roy Cox. Roy retired from the City of Pittsburgh EMS after 41 years in 2018. Roy was one of my Training Officers when I was hired by the City of Pittsburgh. We talk about Roy's extraordinary career with the City, a few stories are told, we drop a few names, the importance of EMS education and degrees. Roy talks about surviving a helicopter crash and how being a flight medic ties back to his best friend, his dad.

Episode 253 is Dov Maisel. Dov is the Co-founder & Director of Operations at United Hatzalla of Israel. He is an inventor, innovator, public speaker, podcaster, and expert in disaster management. Dov is making a repeat appearance on Medic2Medic. We catch up and talk about United Hatzalla, and their response to Covid, Surfside Condimuimn collapse, and his new podcast Real Life Rescues on the JEMS platform. I found out Medic2Medic was Dov's first podcast and (you can see the picture on Medic2Medic's FB page) that Dov has the Medic2Medic exclusive mug in his office. 

Episode 252 is Steven Nelson. Steven is currently a licensed paramedic with Harris County Emergency Corps, a 911 EMS agency in Houston, Texas, Steven is the author of the article in JEMS "My Experience As a Black Paramedic". After his time as a Hospital Corpsman in the Navy, Steven went on to obtain undergraduate degrees in EMS, his master’s degree in healthcare administration, and is currently working towards completing his doctorate. We talk about the article, his Navy career, entrance into EMS, struggles, and how he overcame them. We talk about strategies on how EMS can attract more African Americans into EMS

Episode 251 is Mike Davis. After 10 plus years in the Army, Mike started his EMS career at Cary Area EMS. Mike also has an entrepreneurial spirit, which led him to start his business Guardians Nutrition & Fitness. Guardians Nutrition & Fitness serves frontline workers and military clients in reaching their weight loss and fitness goals. Mike takes us on his journey from moving around the world as a kid, military,  EMS careers, and his new venture. We talk about fitness and mental health, and they interact. To learn more about MIke's business, head to https://www.guardiansnutritionandfitness.com/ and on Instagram @guardians.nutrition.

Episode 250 is Rickquel Tripp, MD MPH. Rikki is a Clinical Assistant Professor of Emergency Medicine, EMS faculty, and Medical Director of 4 different EMS agencies in the Pittsburgh area. She has chaired the Networking Committee of the Physician Inclusion Council of Pitt and UPMC (PICUP) for 5 years and now serves as the first Vice-Chair of Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion of UPMC Graduate Medical Education and first Vice-Chair Diversity, Health Equity, & Inclusion of Department of Emergency Medicine. She is Vice-Chair of NAEMSP's Diversity in EMS Task Force. Rikki and I talk about her medical and military career path, medical school selection, and diversity and inclusion in EMS. Rikki shares her stories and experiences and offers tips on how EMS can improve with diversity within the workforce.

Episode 249: Dr. Paul Louis is making his second visit to the podcast. Paul is the co-founder of Aerosoless Medical and the Safety Neb. Paul is here to provide an update on the Safety Neb.  The Safety Nebulizer mask with viral filters that were created by Aerosoless. The mask was created in response to the concern about nebulizer treatments during Covid-19. Paul is an experienced, Board Certified Emergency Medicine Physician who is also passionate also about the products that his company is developing to keep Frontline Workers safer. He has been practicing clinically for almost 20 years. For more information on the Safety Neb https://aerosolessmedical.com/

Episode 248 is Ginny Renkiewicz is an Assistant Professor of Healthcare Administration at Methodist University and an award winning EMS educator and innovator. Ginny is 22 years in EMS as a Paramedic, instructor, and Program Director. Ginny volunteers for several peer-reviewed journals and serves as the Executive Director of the Foundation for Prehospital Medicine and Research. Ginny and I talk about the unique way she became involved in EMS, her passion for research, and a patient that had a significant impact on Ginny. 

Randolph Mantooth Re-Podcast Episode: It is the time of year when I replay the most listened to podcast from Medic2Medic. The story of how Mr. Mantooth became a guest goes like this. The podcast had a few objectives when I started 6 years ago. A few objectives included starting a podcast, 50 episodes, and having Johnny Gage as a guest. It took lots of wrong turns and emails, but I found a good email for Mr. Mantooth and sent it off. This was in the fall of 2015. In December, his publicist contacted me and said to reach out after the new year. I waited until January 2nd, and a few weeks later, Mr. Mantooth would be a guest. I got the chance to record and speak with Mr. Mantooth in March, and it was a thrill, and I was honored. This was episode number 30 in March of 2016. Enjoy.

Episode 247 is Tracy Moore. Tracy served as a Minneapolis firefighter and captain for more than 20 years. During her career as a fire captain, Tracy earned the Meritorious Service Unit Citation Medal. She was also presented with the Community Service Award. After retiring from the fire department, Tracy became a Flight Attendant, and most recently she has published a novel, "The Fire She Fights" (available on Amazon), highlighting the need for social change and gender equity in the fire service. The novel is based on the true stories of Minneapolis women firefighters, featuring four fictional characters. We discuss Tracy's career, social change within the fire department, and the book.

Episode 246 is Darla Varrenti. Darla is the CEO and Co-Founder of the Nick Of Time Foundation. The Foundations was created in memory of her 16 yr old son, a multisport athlete who appeared healthy until suffering a Sudden Cardiac Arrest. Did you know that one high school athlete suffers a Sudden Cardiac Arrest every 3 days in the U.S.? How do you detect a student's athlete's unknown heart defect? Screening. This is what the Nick Of Time Foundation does. We talk about Nick's story and the foundation's mission. You will not believe the number of students that Nick of Time Foundation has screened since starting. To learn more about the foundation, head over to nickoftimefoundation.org

Episode 245 are Division Chiefs of EMS Ben Boyko and Scott Ryckman. Ben is the Division Chief for Ferndale Fire District 7, and Scott is the Division Chief for Bellingham Fire Department. They work together very well to provide leadership, guidance, patient care just not for their departments but for the Whatcom County EMS System. Ben and Scott have interesting and unique paths into the Fire and EMS Service world, which we discuss. During our conversation, we learn about their departments, their duties as MSOs, leadership style, challenges, and what they would be doing if they were not in public safety.

Episode 244 is Kevin McGarvey Kevin is an emergency physician and entrepreneur with a passion for commercializing healthcare innovations that patients and providers love. Today, he is the CEO and co-founder of Hippo Health, a team-based telehealth platform that has had explosive growth over the last 2 years in Colorado. Over the last year, the platform has become focused on EMS Telehealth, where it is enabling paramedics to treat patients in place in the home with on demand emergency physicians. Kevin discusses how he goes from studying Religion to Medical School? We also discuss his entrepreneurial spirit, HIPPO Health, and telemedicine in EMS.

Episode 243 is Mike Hilley. Mike is the EMS Manager of Whatcom County EMS and my boss. Mike brings over 25 years of EMS and Fire experience as a Paramedic, Firefighter, and EMS Chief to his role here in Whatcom County. Mike takes on his journey from Birmingham, Alaska, King County, and Whatcom County. We talk about his career in the Coast Guard, leadership, and a few of his adventures.

Episode 242 is Steve Wirth and Matthew Koyna from PW&W Law Firm. PW&W is a legal leader in the EMS industry. Steve and Matt speak about the Paramedics that have been indicted in Colorado regarding the Mr. McClain case and the use of Ketamine.

Episode 241 is Joe Frank. Joe is a Captain in the Bellingham Fire Department and leader of the Community Paramedic program here in Whatcom County. Joe started his career in 2008 with BFD and was promoted to Captain in 2017. Joe takes us through his path from a small town in Washington State, his introduction into EMS, & fire service, to Alaska, and to his current role. We talk about becoming a Paramedic, Paramedic school, and the beginning, current status, and the future of the Community Paramedic program in Whatcom County.

Episode 240 is James DiClemente. James is a paramedic in Cambridge, MA and has spent the last 10 years focused on providing quality EMS education. James spent 8 years as a paramedic program director and currently runs the day to day operations of Prodigy EMS and was part of the team that brought you Refresh 2021. Why did James pick EMS?  He lets us know and why and how he went against the advice of a friend to enter the EMS world. James is passionate about EMS Education and you will his passion as he speaks about the current and future of EMS education. If you have not heard about Prodigy and Refresh2021, we get the inside story on the collaboration. 

Episode 239 is Joe Bertels. Joe in July retired from the Bellingham Fire Department after 33 years of service. Joe takes us from building boats to joining the department as a firefighter/paramedic. His first experience with an ambulance crew is an interesting story that occurred many years before entering public safety. Joe explains what made him choose the EMS side and that story you don't want to miss. Joe led the BFD to establish their High-Performance CPR program. Congratulations Joe on 33 years and welcoming this east coaster.

Episode 238 is Elizabeth Marshall. Elizabeth is an internationally published cover model, bodybuilder, entrepreneur, and fitness professional. Elizabeth has teamed up with Brothers N Arms (BNA) (https://www.thebrothersnarms.co) to talk about CBD. BNA is a full-service lifestyle brand/CBD company focused on working with Veterans, Athletes, and First Responders. We were also joined by BNA's Director of Operations Mervin Forero. During the podcast, Elizabeth tells us about her beginnings in the world of modeling, struggles, and how CBD has helped her with her anxiety. We talk about the misconceptions that surround CBD use and the education that is needed.I want to thank Tim Nowak, CEO of Emergency Medical Solutions for reaching out to his network and for creating a poll on CBD use in the public safety arena. The results are mentioned in the podcast. https://www.spreaker.com/user/8261019/elizabeth-marshall