February 2nd Meeting Notes

Marty Scheerer, Sr. Director of EMS/EMS Chief at Hennepin EMS

Marty Scheerer spoke to the club about the civil unrest the occurred this summer after the death of George Floyd and other topics facing his department during this time. First, Mr. Scheerer talked about the department's response to COVID-19. He was proud to announce that Hennipen EMS had been instrumental in helping the CDC develop their COVID-19 guidance early in the pandemic and how they continue to be in communication with the CDC and other public health officials. He told the club that lots of plans were already in place before the pandemic for a similar event, but quickly they found out they needed to developed more plans. Some staff members were getting sick, putting a strain on their staffing. He spoke about making sure that all paramedics had appropriate PPE to be safe when responding to calls. 

Mr. Scheerer then talked about the response to the civil unrest following George Floyd's death in Minneapolis this summer. He described the situation as a sudden eruption of activity, with multiple gunshot wounds thought-out the city and that both police, fire, and paramedics were overwhelmed. As the days went on, violence was getting worse, and paramedics were not feeling safe on the job. Many of them were reporting getting rocks and stones thrown at them when responding to a medical call. EMS, along with police, established unsafe zones where paramedics would not respond unless accompanied by police. He talked about how quickly the tides had turned when the national guard was called in, and an emergency operation center was put into place. He talked about how this really assisted with communication. He was able to work alongside Minneapolis Police and Minnesota National Guard to respond to calls in a safe manner. He talked about how some national guard members were not prepared for this type of experience and how additional training may need to be intimated to prepare everyone.  
 
Finally, he discussed some changes that his department will be made after the experience this summer. For example, EMS will be getting new uniforms to differentiate between police and paramedics easily. He talked about planning that is already in place for the trial in the upcoming months. Groups are meeting weekly to prep, and police and national guard are receiving additional training needed. 

Announcements:

  • Frank Sherwood thanked all members for their support of Rotary Rocks the Prairie. He also thanked all our sponsors who assisted with the event. We sold 139 tickers and made a net revenue of $3,600. Frank reported a few technical issues with sound and the video, but overall it went well!
  • Tim Conners invited the club to a Climate Workshop that will be featuring research from MIT and other well-respected scientists. Please contact Tim Conners at t timothyconners@gmail.com for more information.

Happy Fives:

  • Aaron Casper was happy to report that his kids are going back to in-person school.
  • Irene Kelly thanked Frank and Mary Joe for their hard work on Rotary Rocks the Prairie.
  • John Crudele also thanked all the fundraising team for their hard work.
  • Tim Conners seconded John and Irene for thanking Frank and the whole team for the wonderful event. 
  • Dennis Kim also thanked the team for their hard work and was happy to report that both he and his wife were going to get their COVID-19 vaccine
  • Josh Swanson was excited to share that all 7-12 grade students will be back in school.
  • Prafulla thanked the club for there hard work with Rotary Rocks the Prairie