When my wife dialed 911 two weeks at midnight, our building was soon surrounded by fire engines with lights flashing and an ambulance from whence emergency medical technicians rushed to our apartment. These first emergency responders were there within ten minutes of the call. They were all young and they were all volunteers.
US is one of few countries that has volunteerism as an integral part of its social fabric. It was Alex Tocqueville, visiting the US in 1830, who concluded that "Americans of all ages, all stations of life, and all types of disposition are forever forming associations." There are not only commercial and industrial associations in which all take part, but others of a thousand different types–religious, moral, serious, futile, very general and very limited, immensely large, and very minute. These associations, according to him, formed bonds between people and helped people solve local problems locally. A volunteer garden club, for example, could plant flowers in public parks which helped beautify towns without costing the town money; it was a form of civic participation, in a sense, since it was related to the task of governing in a tangential way. Tocqueville thought town meetings were a "marvel of municipal freedom" and he was impressed how people could settle their affairs "with no distinction of rank”.
This tradition of civic participation still survives and indeed flourishes even today.According to Volunteering in America 2009, the most comprehensive data ever assembled on volunteer trends and demographics, a total of 61.8 million Americans volunteered through an organization in 2008, up one million from the previous year. America’s volunteers dedicated more than 8 billion hours of service in 2008, worth an estimated $162 billion. While the formal volunteering rate in America remained relatively stable at 26.4 percent, other less-formal ways of serving in communities have dramatically increased. The number of people who worked with their neighbors to fix a community problem rose by 31 percent, from 15.2 million in 2007 to 19.9 million in 2008, suggesting an emerging trend of self-organized ‘do-it-yourself’ service. More surprisingly the report also found an increase in volunteering by young adults (age 16-24), rising from 7.8 million in 2007 to 8.2 million in 2008. The volunteer rate of women increased from 29.4 percent in 2008 to 30.1 percent in 2009, while the volunteer rate for men, at 23.3 percent, was essentially unchanged. By age, 35- to 54-year olds were the most likely to volunteer with their volunteer rates hovering at about 31 percent. Volunteer rates were lowest among persons in their early twenties (18.8 percent) and those age 65 and over (23.9 percent). Among the major race and ethnicity groups, whites continued to volunteer at a higher rate (28.3 percent) than did blacks (20.2 percent), Asians (19.0 per- cent), and Hispanics (14.7 percent). Volunteer rates were higher among married persons (32.3 percent) than those who had never married (20.6 percent). Parents with children under age 18 were substantially more likely to volunteer than were persons without children under 18 years of age, 34.4 per-cent compared with 23.9 percent. Individuals with higher levels of educational attainment were also more likely to volunteer than were those with less education. Among persons age 25 and over, 42.8 percent of college graduates volunteered, compared with 18.8 percent of high school graduates and 8.6 percent of those with less than a high school diploma.
But the most intriguing part is that volunteers in the US man an overwhelming majority of fire fighting and emergency medical services. This is indeed unique. In most countries, these critical emergency services are considered to be part of the obligations of the state as much as defense services are. It is rather strange to find that the first responders in a crisis of a fire or medical emergency are all people who may live next door and have another profession by day! A prime example of this is the rescue squad that came to my residence two weeks ago.
The Bethesda-Chevy Chase Rescue Squad was founded in 1937 and has evolved into one of the nations most advanced and best trained volunteer rescue squads. What began as a one-ambulance department operating out of a tiny garage in Northwest Washington, D.C. some seven decades ago, has now grown into one of the best-trained, best-equipped rescue squads in the nation, providing compassionate, life-saving services to the community. A tradition of “Answering the Call” was born that continues to this day.
Today this squad serves about 100,000 households in the area and it responded to about 10,000 calls last year, including heart attacks, illnesses, vehicle collisions, house fires, and many other emergencies. The Squad’s 150 professionally-trained volunteers, a daytime staff, and two Montgomery County Paramedics respond to over 30 calls for help every day. What is even more interesting is that the squad is not funded by the government. Instead it derives almost all of its operating funds from generous community donations and occasional state and federal grants. Last year it had total expenses of $1.9 million of which individual contributions made up $1.2 million or almost two thirds of the total. Yet through the use of volunteers, this squad saved taxpayers $3.6 million in personnel costs.
It is not that these volunteers are not professional or well trained. They are, and quite rigorously. The squad takes in those who are at least 18 years old and have a high school diploma, and are willing to spend at least one day a week for three years working in rescue operations. Once accepted, and having passed the mandatory physical, the volunteers can also be given training to become an Emergency Medical Technician. This training program consists of over 131 hours of classroom time coupled with additional in-hospital clinical requirements and countless hours spent riding Rescue Squad ambulances on actual emergency calls. The volunteers learn about patient assessment; CPR; bleeding control; fracture management; and medical, environmental, and obstetrical emergencies. They also learn how to use an Automated External Defibrillator (AED) to restart a heart. Some volunteers can go on to become Firefighters and/or Paramedics by taking additional instructions. Paramedics are required to take a 532-hour EMT-I class which leads to a higher level of medical training for pre-hospital care providers at the Rescue Squad. This advanced training prepares them to administer drugs, offer intravenous therapy, and interpret EKGs using a cardiac monitor. The 120-hour firefighter's course consists of extensive classroom instruction as well as physically demanding practical training, including live firefighting exercises. Training includes not just how to extinguish fires, but also skills needed to address a variety of emergency situations involving hazardous materials, electrical equipment, fire alarm and sprinkler systems, and many others. The training and rewarding life experiences one gains--as well as the value to the community--make the Rescue Squad an organization that can change ones life and certainly save others lives.
These volunteers are a tight, elite group that makes a valuable contribution to the community. This volunteer tradition saves lives. It certainly did mine.
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