Photo Credit: TEAAM

By Randi-Marie Adams

A new air medical response team is about to take flight

Mar 13, 2021 | 4:09 PM

Prince George – There will soon be a new emergency crew in town, called Technical Evacuation Advanced Aero Medical Society, and they’re almost ready for take-off here in Prince George.

TEAAM was hatched back in 2017 in Squamish after Miles Randell, lost a friend to cardiac arrest in the backcountry, realizing then, there was a major gap in medical emergency care in B.C.

“We identified that people in remote settings particularly workers, loggers, people in the tree planting and forestry sector, weren’t able to get advanced medical life support care to them, in remote settings in British Columbia,” says Randell.

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Randell is no stranger to the medical field and has been in the business for over 30 years.

“Twenty-four years as a paramedic, twenty-nine years with search and rescue, 15-years as a pro-ski patroller, and I’ve taught at the Canadian forces school of search and rescue.”

The crew is made up of paramedics and physicians dedicated to providing crucial life support and training in long-line helicopter rescues. They’re also trained in various other life-saving skills

“We also perform auto extrication in remote places for example, if a logger rolls his truck on remote logging road where there isn’t a fire department to respond. We have our medics trained with auto extraction skills. We can do swift water rescue, mountain rescue.”

Something like this is crucial to northern B.C., with so many rural and remote locations, this non-profit organization has already saved time and lives in our area. According to a report written by Roger Harris, who is B.C.’s Forest Safety Ombudsman, if you live near an urban centre in British Columbia, if you suffer an injury in an accident, you will be transported to a medical facility in less than an hour. If you live or work in rural BC, there are no such assurances.

“TEAAMS was one of those innovators, they started in Squamish area they have a unique system, where they bring health care to the patient as opposed to just having a helicopter response so you can bring the patient to the facility.”

Prince George was always part of the plan when it came to expansion, especially since Randell has experience in the area

“Prince George was always our second base in our long-range plans because we knew that there was a large gap and a huge area to cover. when I started my career as a paramedic, I worked in Chetwynd, Fort St. John and did calls in Prince George and I identified a massive gap in pre-hospital care coverage in the remote settings out there.”

TEAAM has already begun the hiring process here in Prince George and they have had an overwhelming response. The Prince George crew will have 50 medical professionals which will be a combination of paramedics, doctors, nurses, firefighters, and rescue professionals. Training will begin here in Prince George at the beginning of April.

If you’d like to donate or get involved, you can visit the TEAAM website.