Aspirus’ EMS bike team gets ready to patrol for U.S. Senior Open
By: Austin Schindler, WAOW, June 20, 2023
Watch the video: https://www.waow.com/news/aspirus-ems-bike-team-gets-ready-to-patrol-for-u-s-senior-open/article_b2be91d8-0fc0-11ee-913a-b7e65e3419d1.html
STEVENS POINT, Wis. (WAOW) - Amid all the excitement for the U.S. Senior Open, it's easy to forget that spending all day on the green isn't easy.
That's why the Aspirus EMS bike team is training to make sure they can respond to any emergency come tee time.
I think we're as prepared as we could be," said Michael Clark, a medicine physician with Aspirus. "I think if we pushed this out another month or two, I don't think we'd be any more prepared to provide care."
That includes anything from as small as a cut to a heart attack.
"We want to provide that initial care on-site," said Clark. "As minor as sunburn, cuts and scraps, all the way up to cardiac arrest."
That's why Aspirus is sending out their EMS bike team. Packed with a defibrillator and equipment they need to give short-term emergency care until they can get them to a medical tent or to the hospital.
"There will be medical attention everywhere," said Clark. "They'll all be wearing red shirts. All the volunteers on-site who have radios, they have a channel to our joint operation center to contact for any public safety or medical needs."
There's going to be a lot of ground to cover throughout the course, and the team says they're going to have to expect the unexpected.
"We have maps that we have drawn out with the gates where the ambulance is going to be, where the ambulance is up here, and where the carts are gong to be," said said Jennifer Kimmerling, a paramedic with Aspirus MedEvac. "That is very beneficial. All the way down to the last week we were discussing and making sure we know where each of the paths go."
No matter what happens, the crews are ready even if it's just on two wheels.
"Pretty much everything that we can do in the ambulance, we can do on our bikes," said Kimmerling.
The last details are in place to make sure everything is covered for the tournament.
For tickets, they'll be available on the USGA website.