Monthly Archives: June 2014

Words That Describe Us: Volume 27

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Aetna Ambulance Service, Inc. - Ambulance Service of Manchester, LLC.MANCHESTER and HARTFORD — Aetna Ambulance and ASM send Patient and Customer Satisfaction Surveys to a random sampling of patients who have received emergency or STAT inter-facility services from our companies.

The final question in the survey asks “Do you have any suggestions on how we can improve our service?” And, “Please use one word to describe us.”

Some of the answers/responses included:

  • Top shelf.
  • Very professional and compassionate.
  • Excellent!
  • Professionals.
  • Professional. They got me there alive!
  • Very professional. The staff is without a doubt, top notch.
  • Exceptional.
  • Caring.
  • Very professional, very kind, sympathetic. They did their very best at keeping my anxiety level down. They did a great job. This was my first call for help in this nature and I can’t say enough on how well I was treated. Thank you so much. (14-38217; B. Mathiau, J. Bush).
  • Caring and efficient.
  • Outstanding!
  • Caring.
  • Excellent. They were very professional. Couldn’t have been better. (14-38987; R. Fraley, R. Leslie).
  • Personable and very knowledgeable.
  • Ok.
  • Great.
  • The [EMS Providers] were knowledgeable, good communicators, kind and professional. It was a positive experience for a difficult situation. (14-39676; M. Levasseur, R. Fross responding with Coventry Volunteer Fire Association).
  • Very caring, knowledgeable and professional.
  • Wonderful!
  • Efficient, kind. Thank you so much for your help…Thanks to you, I’m on my way to a satisfactory recovery.
  • Very professional.

Hartford Hospital ED Presents Plaque Dedicated to Aetna and the Grady Family

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HARTFORD —  A plaque commemorating Aetna Ambulance and the company’s founding family, the Grady’s, was unveiled at a June 11, 2014 ceremony at Hartford Hospital’s Emergency Department. The plaque hangs in the ambulance triage area.

Remarks thanking the Grady Family and Aetna Ambulance for their contribution to EMS in the area were made by Chief Emergency Physician Dr. Jeff Finkelstein. Ms. Diane Evans, the daughter of Howard and Ethel Grady, was on hand to represent the family and accept the plaque. Photos and light refreshments followed.

Learn more about the history of Aetna Ambulance and the Grady family here…

Paralyzed Man Gets Surprise Lift To Son’s Graduation

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Read the original Fox CT story here…

LOUISA MOLLER — Fox CT

A paralyzed Connecticut man was given a special gift Monday by a generous ambulance company. Frank Foster was transported from New Britain to Danbury by the Ambulance Service of Manchester to see his only son graduate from Bethel High School.

“None of us expected this. If it wasn’t for my friends at the ambulance company, it wouldn’t have happened,” Foster said.

Foster has spent most of his time in hospitals since a devastating incident a few years ago. He suffered from an aortic aneurism resulting in a spinal cord injury.

“I was in my living room and all the sudden, I dropped to the floor. Luckily my phone was next to me,” Foster said.

He had discussed his son Paul’s graduation with ASM employees but did not learn that the company was transporting him, free of charge, until a few months later.

“Surprise is an understatement,” Foster said. Read more from Fox 61 here…

Hospital-Bound Dad Gets to See Son’s High School Graduation

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Thanks so much to Hospital for Special Care and to everyone who was able to make this happen. A special thanks to Rachel Buechele and Matt Tuttle who worked with the patient to come up with the idea .

Additional media coverage of the above story can be found here:

Hospital-Bound Dad Gets to See Son’s High School Graduation – NBC Connecticut

Bedridden Bethel father able to see son graduate – WFSB

WFSB 3 Connecticut

Bethel father gets ambulance ride to son’s graduation – News Times of Danbury

Patient information was used with express, written permission.

Meet the Newest Members of the ASM Team: ASM Adds Four

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MANCHESTER — On June 19, 2014, four EMTs were added to the ASM team. As part of our continued growth ASM and Aetna seek out only the best candidates. We look for employees who are focused on high-quality patient care, are team oriented and conduct themselves in a professional manner. During the orientation, employees learn about company philosophy and goals, quality assurance, and policies and procedures.

Justin Duval:   FULL TIME, EMT. My name is Justin Duval and I am 31 years old. I live in Ashford, CT with my wife and two awesome boys. We have a 110 pound German shepherd babysitter named Major. I am certified at the level of Firefighter II and Wildland Firefighter Type 2. I have been a volunteer firefighter with the Ashford Volunteer Fire Department for five years now. My experience there has given me a passion for the EMS field. I have been an automotive mechanic for the past twelve years and I am ready to pursue a career in something that I enjoy doing and that makes me happy. I feel honored to be chosen for this position and look forward to my new career at ASM.

Carolyn Judge:   FULL TIME, EMT. Hi I’m Carolyn and I’m from Weston, CT.  I graduated from UConn with a degree in Biological Sciences and subsequently became an EMT.  I’ve been living in Newington for about a year and volunteering with Newington Volunteer Ambulance.  In my free time I enjoy outdoor sports in particular trail running and backpacking.  I am very excited and grateful for the opportunity to be a part of ASM!

Laura McHugh:  FULL TIME, EMT. My name is Laura McHugh and I am 23 years old.  I grew up in East Windsor, but currently reside in Vernon, CT. I graduated high school in 2008 at EWHS, then attended Ridely Lowell for Medical Assistant. The summer of 2013 I studied for my EMT-B certification at CPR Training Professionals while working at JMH in the Emergency Department. In my free time I enjoy running, hiking, reading, spending time with my family and traveling. I am also a huge New England Patriots fan. I’m excited to begin my career at ASM while serving the community.

Jovany Rosado:   FULL TIME, EMT. Well I’m a country bumpkin raised on a pig farm on a tropical island.  I’m an easy going gear-head that just loves humanity and firmly believes in that an ounce of honest heartfelt kindness will stop a tsunami of negativity and hatred. I’m a loving husband and father to a three month old baby girl and a 13 going 30 young man whom I swear wants me to get hit by a meteor.  As a gear head and an overall science enthusiast I love to tinker, modify, tear things apart and poke about it, whatever it may be.  I however am not a hopeless and unreasonable romantic.  We live in the REAL world where sometimes bad things happen to good and bad people.  Where accidents happen and people do terrible things to themselves and sadly to others.  I believe without a doubt that I can somehow in this giant equation of life, I can, with my tiny number, make a significant difference.  I’m a liver and lover of life.  I believe that life is too short as it is without negative circumstances prevailing.  As an EMT-B with his eyes on Paramedic school, I might be able to provide some time of precious life to those who I can extent of my abilities to.

Thank You Letters from Bowers Elementary Career Day

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MANCHESTER — In April 2014 ASM’s Ted Oliver and Stephanie Boutot attended Bowers Elementary School Career Day to talk to the children about ambulances, Paramedics and EMTs, and medical emergencies.

The Career Day team wrote to ASM to say thank you. An excerpt reads, “Please accept our warmest thank you for volunteering your time to be a part of our Bowers School Career Day! The day was full of wonderful people like you, positive messages, and appreciative students and staff members.”

Words That Describe Us: Volume 26

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Aetna Ambulance Service, Inc. - Ambulance Service of Manchester, LLC.MANCHESTER and HARTFORD — Aetna Ambulance and ASM send Patient and Customer Satisfaction Surveys to a random sampling of patients who have received emergency or STAT inter-facility services from our companies.

The final question in the survey asks “Do you have any suggestions on how we can improve our service?” And, “Please use one word to describe us.”

Some of the answers/responses included:

  • Service was excellent!
  • Professional and compassionate.
  • Great service!
  • Very good x 2.
  • Professional and caring x 2.
  • Helpful and professional.
  • Excellent. Very, very good.
  • Comforting.
  • Skilled. Attendants very courteous and professional! (14-31622; D. Noyes, T. Whalen).
  • Efficient.
  • Very good.
  • Very personable and made me feel at ease. I wish I knew their names, but they provided excellent service. They made me feel very comfortable. They are great employees. (14-32476; K. Caldwell, M. Hoyt).
  • I felt they were very concerned with my well-being.
  • Caring and professional x 2.
  • Very professional x 2.
  • Very caring – Very professional.
  • Dependable.
  • Exceptional professionals.
  • The Best.
  • Professional – Efficient
  • Good medical care.
  • Good service.
  • Very caring and informative.
  • Professional, skilled, prompt, knowledgeable.
  • Life saving.

Renovation and Expansion of ASM’s “10-1″: Volume 16

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MANCHESTER — Additions and renovations to the Ambulance Service of Manchester’s main headquarters, known to employees as “10-1,” continue. As of this writing:

  • The new main entrance on the south side of the building is open and in use, complete with a new reception area.
  • Water fountains have been installed.
  • The old storage cages have been demolished to make space for a fourth lift in the fleet maintenance area and for more ambulance and wheelchair van parking.
  • Signage, an awning and planters will be added to the new entrance soon.
  • The dispatch center is near completion with a new layout, carpet tiles, area for a kitchenette, a new crew entrance, a separate wheelchair van dispatch area and more.

The next steps are moving dispatch into its new home and re-configuring the main call-taking office.

The addition and renovation are part of ASM’s continued commitment and investment in the towns it serves.

CPR & AED Awareness Week Training a Success

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CPR WeekMANCHESTER — On June 5, 2014 some 80 local residents received training in delivering CPR and operating AEDs during an Awareness Week training. The mass event was held at Mahoney Recreation Center in Manchester. Instructors were provided by ASM, Manchester’s Community Emergency Response Team (CERT), the town’s Health Department and Proactive Safety.

CPR Week 2Sponsored by:

  • Manchester Health Department
  • Fire-Rescue-EMS
  • Eighth Utilities District
  • CPR Program
  • Ambulance Service of Manchester
  • ProActive Safety

Cleared for Independent Dispatch: Aetna’s Chris Nelson Completes Precepting

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(L to R): Aetna's Chris Nelson and HH's Michael Zacchera.

(L to R): Aetna’s Chris Nelson and HH’s Michael Zacchera.

HARTFORD – As of June 5, 2014 Aetna’s Chris Nelson has been cleared by Hartford Hospital medical control for independent dispatch as a paramedic to the towns that Aetna serves.

Chris’s preceptor was Kevin Stock. The full precepting phase can take ten to 12 weeks or more as the paramedic is prepped for the realities of the field. As with all precepting phases at Aetna, Chris’s final approval came from Hartford Hospital after shadowing Chris and his preceptor in the field as they responded to emergency calls.

Chris graduated from the New Haven Sponsor Hospital Paramedic Program. 

On behalf of the Aetna Family, we would like to wish Chris the best of luck and say we are very proud to have such skilled professionals on staff.

Words That Describe Us: Volume 25

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Aetna Ambulance Service, Inc. - Ambulance Service of Manchester, LLC.MANCHESTER and HARTFORD — Aetna Ambulance and ASM send Patient and Customer Satisfaction Surveys to a random sampling of patients who have received emergency or STAT inter-facility services from our companies.

The final question in the survey asks “Do you have any suggestions on how we can improve our service?” And, “Please use one word to describe us.”

Some of the answers/responses included:

  • The EMT’s were great, but I hope I never need your services. Thank you for your prompt service, professional care, concern, kindness and humor. (14-39662; J. Pasquale, S. Whalen).
  • Excellent services and personnel.
  • Considerate.
  • Caring and knowledgeable.
  • Very caring.
  • Professional and knowledgeable.
  • Excellent service.
  • Well trained.
  • Great.
  • First class.
  • Thoughtful, efficient.
  • Quick response to 911 call.
  • Friendly, professional, caring. Thank to all of those who took care of me! (drew a heart) (14-20568; L. Mazzoni, D. Rice).
  • Excellent, professional service.
  • Everyone and everything was perfect (14-25136; M. Campbell, R. Gonska).
  • Excellent service.
  • Calm, caring.
  • R. and K. we’re both great! (14-27862; R. McConville, K. King).
  • You guys were the best!
  • Kind
  • A-O-K.
  • Prompt, excellent service.
  • Comforting, easing anxiety, courteous. [Patient] had a stroke 15 years ago and can’t talk and was very upset when he could not breathe. EMT relaxed him and helped him immediately and treated me with respect and calmed my fears. Thank you for your services. (14-31597; A. Fine, J. Rassmussen).

Manchester Man Charged With Hit And Run After School Bus Accident

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Four children were on board this school bus when it was hit in the rear by a driver who fled the scene at Main and Center streets, police said. Officers later arrested a suspect. No one was seriously hurt. (Jesse Leavenworth/The Hartford Courant / June 3, 2014)

8:02 p.m. EDT, June 3, 2014

MANCHESTER — After ramming his car into the rear of a school bus Tuesday evening, a local man drove away and then tried to lie about the accident, police said.

No one was seriously hurt.

Allan Perry, 27, of Oak Street, was charged with various motor vehicle violations, including evading responsibility. Perry, who was not hurt, was being held Tuesday night at the police station, Lt. David Ellsworth said.

The accident happened at about 4:55 p.m. at Main and Center streets. The driver of a 2010 Chevrolet Impala hit the rear end of a school bus carrying eight children, ages 10-14, Ellsworth said. The children complained of bumped heads and headaches, but none required hospitalization, he said.

Read the full article here…

High Praise for ASM’s John Bonneau and Drew Hedberg

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Satisfaction SurveyMANCHESTER — On May 13, 2014 ASM’s John Bonneau and Drew Hedberg responded alongside Manchester’s Eight District Fire Department for a 911 call. One to two weeks after the transport the patient was randomly selected to receive a Patient Satisfaction Report.

When asked to use or word or phrase to describe the crew the patient wrote: “Wonderful. Did their job well.”

She went on to write, “Your ASM team were wonderful, professional and caring. I was crying much of the time off and on from the onset to being in the hospital. The EMT with me was extra special. He made me comfortable, asked necessary questions in a most caring way, even asked me how my Mother’s Day was and told me about his. I highly recommend you company. ASM was represented by your team in a most positive way.”

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