SCOTTSBLUFF, Neb., – Jason Teters, NREMT-P a paramedic with Emergency Response Care, the Sidney-based ambulance service of Regional West Health Services in Scottsbluff, recently attended a conference in Tempe, AZ aimed at increasing patient safety.

The conference, sponsored by Thomco Insurance, Ambulance Plus and Zurich, was a two-day event educating pre-hospital care providers on the importance of workplace and driving safety.

“We owe it to our patients and our coworkers to ensure safety in responding to calls for help and in transporting our patients to definitive care,” says Teters. “Getting the proper education is the first step. It’s important to remember we are not alone on the road.”

Some topics of presentation in the 16-hour event included proper selection and use of restraint systems, illness and injury of the EMS workforce, safety leadership and behavioral change and hospitals and medical transportation providers-shared risks.

Teters has already begun training his co-workers at Emergency Response Care, and the team will have ongoing computer training as well as monthly educational opportunities as a result of the conference attendance.

“It doesn’t matter how highly educated we become in our field if we can’t ensure the safety of our partners and our patients. Safety is an important goal and it’s just another way we provide quality care to our friends and neighbors,” said Teters.

Regional West Health Services, with over 1,400 employees, provides comprehensive and innovative health care services for the people and communities of western Nebraska and the neighboring states of Colorado, South Dakota and Wyoming. With over 110 active physicians, 95 percent of whom are board certified or board eligible, plus an additional 25 consulting specialists, we offer care that spans more than 40 medical specialties. Regional West Medical Center, a subsidiary of Regional West Health Services, is accredited by the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations and is one of only three Level II Trauma Centers in the state of Nebraska.