Roger’s story:
Back in December, Roger went into cardiac arrest at his neighbor’s home. Fortunately for Roger, his neighbor Roseann, is an ER nurse at Sanford in Bismarck. Roseann was able to immediately render aid until EMS crews were able to arrive on scene. Roger was then transported to Sanford Medical Center for further management, and ultimately ended up requiring ECMO.
For those of you who have never heard of it, ECMO is a form of life support that temporarily takes over the functions of the heart and lungs when they are unable to perform adequately. This is a highly specialized form of support, which requires transfer to a tertiary care facility that specializes in this treatment for definitive care. The closest hospital for our population is Abbott Northwestern in Minneapolis, MN. Due to the nature of this technology, patients require constant, close supervision and care from professionals who are specially trained in the management of this device, known as perfusionists.
Back in October of 2024, our team here at Bismarck Air Medical received intensive instruction from the team at the Minnesota Heart Institute based out of Abbott Northwestern. The goal was to ensure our crews were knowledgeable and comfortable enough to assist perfusionists from Abbott in the management and care of these devices during transport. Historically, transport has been a barrier to care, due to the intricacies of device management and specialty knowledge required to provide quality, competent care. We are proud to have partnered with the team at Abbott Northwestern to do just that.
Roger was able to benefit from this service. RN Kinzey, RN Barbie, Paramedic Kerry, and Perfusionist Andrew (Abbott NW) were members of the team responsible for transporting Roger to Abbott, where he was able to receive the care he needed to make his recovery.
Recently, Roger was able to reunite with Roseann (neighbor/Sanford ED RN), Alex (Sanford ED RN), Avery (Sanford ED RN), RN Kinzey, and RN Barbie to celebrate his recovery.
