EMS 10 Award Winner Rob Lawrence with Host Jamie Davis
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Rob Lawrence launched the Motorcycle Rider Alert program in Richmond, Va., on April 12, 2011, by the Richmond Ambulance Authority (RAA) and Bon Secours Virginia Health System, in partnership with Motorcycle Virginia, Inc. In 2010, there were 76 motorcycle fatalities and more than 2,191 crashes in the Commonwealth of Virginia, according to preliminary numbers provided by the Virginia Highway Safety Division of the Department of Motor Vehicles. These numbers were up from 71 fatalities and 2,115 crashes in 2009.
The Rider Alert card program is the first of its kind in the U.S., and within nine months of launching in Richmond, more than 125,000 cards had been distributed. The program continues to expand in Virginia and surrounding states thanks to the ongoing efforts of the original organizers and subsequent sponsorship by the American Automobile Association (AAA), Geico Power sports, PHI Helicopters and the Public Safety community of Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley, and it received national recognition from Geico.
Rider Alert also directly issues cards to all of Virginia Rider training programs, so every new rider gets a card to start off with and the message of safety is firmly implanted in their head/helmet. Planning is underway for 2012, with more sponsorship and further roll out across the US in cooperation with a major helicopter EMS organization, as well as internationally. Rider Alert has only been live for nine months, but more than 100,000 riders now carry an alert card, and in Va., every new rider is issued a card by their instructors, riders that have rapidly become patients in an accident have benefited from this simple but exceptionally effective initiative. Visit http://www.rideralert.org/ for more information on this innovative program.
The EMS 10 Awards, sponsored by JEMS magazine (JEMS.com) and Physio-Control awards the unsung heroes in emergency medical services systems throughout the country. Recognizing those who have developed new ways to improve patient care, response, and systems, the EMS 10 award winners are nominated by their colleagues and peers and then a committee of industry leaders reviews the nominations and chooses the 10 most deserving innovators.
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The Innovations in Patient Care podcast is hosted by Jamie Davis, RN, NREMTP, BA, AAS aka “the Podmedic.” The programs are produced by MedicCast Productions, LLC under a sponsorship agreement with Physio-Control, Inc. More programs covering medical and health topics can be found on the ProMed Network (ProMedNetwork.com) where there are over 45 programs like this one covering all areas of health care.
