Donald Gintzig, Jim Palombaro: A dedicated leader for Wake EMS

In many communities, the EMS medical director signs off on protocols and is rarely, if ever, on the scene during emergency calls. That was not the case in Wake County when Brent Myers became Wake County’s EMS medical director in 2002.

Over the past decade, it was not uncommon to see him in living rooms, on soccer fields and on the streets assisting during emergency calls. Why? Because he is a passionate advocate for community health, and it is this passion that helped move Wake County EMS into the national spotlight as one of the country’s most advanced systems.

Revolutionary programs developed under Myers’ leadership include improved pre-hospital cardiac arrest resuscitation with induced hypothermia, enabling more people to emerge from the hospital alive and with a good heart and mental capacity. He also introduced an advanced practice paramedics program to help patients get the right care faster as well as EMS protocols for standalone emergency departments, enabling patients to have access to emergency care closer to their homes.

Myers’ tenure with Wake County EMS and his clinical work with Wake Emergency Physicians, PA ended April 30. This is a thanks to Myers for his service.

This story was originally published May 7, 2015 at 6:17 PM with the headline "Donald Gintzig, Jim Palombaro: A dedicated leader for Wake EMS."