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Tag: Metro West Ambulance

EMS1 | EMS advocacy and adaptability with Shawn Baird

EMS1 Interview of AAA President Shawn Baird by AAA Communications Chair Rob Lawrence

As we enter, hopefully, a happier new year, several of our national associations that have been at the forefront of collaborative advocacy efforts and the voices of the EMS profession have undergone planned changes in their leadership.

To welcome in 2021, I sat down, via Zoom, with Shawn Baird, incoming president of the American Ambulance Association and asked him about 2020 and his thoughts on the future of our industry. Shawn is the vice president for rural services with MetroWest Ambulance Family of Companies in Oregon. Shawn spent the last two years serving the AAA as president elect and has been at the center of AAA activity and advocacy.

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Oregon | President Baird Joins OHA COVID-19 Vaccine Advisory Committee

From the Oregon Department of Human Services on December 31

OHA completes recruitment for COVID-19 Vaccine Advisory Committee

27-member group to create sequencing for COVID-19 immunizations

PORTLAND, Ore. — Oregon Health Authority has completed recruitment for its Vaccine Advisory Committee (VAC) that will determine the sequence in which new COVID-19 vaccines are distributed around the state.

The 27-member committee will advise OHA on vaccine sequencing for phases 1b, 1c and 2 of the state’s vaccine distribution plan, with the goal of prioritizing communities most affected by COVID-19. The COVID-19 Vaccine Advisory Committee will be grounded in OHA’s definition of health equity, which—as cited in this excerpt—is a health system where “all people can reach their full health potential and well-being and are not disadvantaged by their race, ethnicity, language, disability, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, social class, intersections among these communities or identities, or other socially determined circumstances.”

To advance health equity, and counter unjust COVID-19 inequities, the COVID-19 VAC will:

  • Advise OHA on the ethical principles that should guide decisions on sequencing of COVID-19 vaccines.
  • Review data on COVID-19 and immunization inequities.
  • Advise OHA on which workers, high-risk groups or critical populations should be sequenced at what time, taking into consideration where they are located across the state.

The committee roster is as follows:

Aileen Duldulao

Oregon Pacific Islander Coalition

Cherity Bloom-Miller

Siletz Community Health Clinic

Christine Sanders

Rockwood Community Development Corp.

Daysi Bedolla Sotelo

Pineros y Campesinos Unidos del Noroeste

DeLeesa Meashintubby

Volunteers in Medicine

Debra Whitefoot

Nch’i Wana Housing

Derick Du Vivier

Oregon Health & Science University

Dolores Martinez

Euvalcree

George Conway

Deschutes County Health Services

Kalani Raphael

Oregon Pacific Islander Coalition

Kelly Gonzales

Portland State University

Kristin Milligan

Community Volunteer Network

Laurie Skokan

Providence Health & Services

Leslie Sutton

Oregon Council on Developmental Disabilities

Maleka Taylor

The Miracles Club

Maria Loredo

Virginia Garcia Memorial Health Center

Marin Arreola

Interface Network

Muriel DeLaVergne-Brown

Crook County Health Department

Musse Olol

Somali American Council of Oregon

Nannette Carter-Jafri

SEIU Local 503 Indigenous People’s Caucus

Ruth Gulyas

LeadingAge Oregon

Safina Koreishi

Columbia Pacific CCO

Sandra McDonough

Oregon Business & Industry

Shawn Baird

Metro West Ambulance Service

Sue Steward

Northwest Portland Area Indian Health Board

Tsering Sherpa

The Rosewood Initiative

Zhenya Abbruzzese

Adventist Health

“The COVID-19 Vaccine Advisory Committee brings tremendous lived and professional experience to guide OHA’s decisions about vaccine sequencing in a way that upholds OHA’s goal to eliminate health inequities by 2030,” said Cara Biddlecom, OHA deputy public health director.

“Members of this committee represent communities that have been unjustly impacted by COVID-19, including tribal communities and communities of color, and OHA is committed to involving community members in the decision-making processes that affect their lives.”

The committee’s first public meeting is Thursday, Jan. 7, from 9 a.m. to noon. The meeting can be accessed via conference line at 669-254-5252; meeting ID: 160 583 9896.

For more information about the committee, visit the Vaccine Advisory Committee information page. Comments or questions can be emailed to covid.vaccineadvisory@dhsoha.state.or.us.

Stay informed about COVID-19:

Oregon response: The Oregon Health Authority leads the state response.

United States response: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention leads the US response.

Global response: The World Health Organization guides the global response.

MetroWest’s JD Fuiten on Mobile Integrated Health

Metro West Ambulance’s Mobile Integrated Heath Program is a leader in the emerging world of community paramedicine and MIH.  The successes in our programs have been centered on the strong relationships we have built with our health system partners.  This partnership allows Metro West Ambulance MIH paramedics to better participate in the longitudinal care of our patients instead of the focused, episodic care of traditional EMS. We have now positioned ourselves as an integral part of the health care team.  The value of an MIH paramedic continues to expand as the skills, tools and knowledge of the paramedic profession as a whole continues to increase.

As the success of the MIH programs across the country continue to prove their value, we look forward to full recognition by CMS as a valuable patient care service that should be recognized outside of the traditional transport fee for service.

JD Fuiten
CEO, Metro West Ambulance
Director, AAA Board
2015 AAA Distinguished Service Award Winner
Hillsboro, OR

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