ENGLEWOOD, N.J.—Every day, people with severe medical emergencies die before an ambulance can arrive. Beginning Sept. 19, United Rescue has begun training volunteers at Englewood Health, under the direction of Emergency Medical Services Director Rick Sposa, to provide equipment and treatment that can save lives. When every second counts, a 911 call to a neighbor who is medically trained may make the difference between life and death.
United Rescue, a nonprofit organization, uses a central system to locate the nearest volunteer through a GPS-enabled app on the volunteer’s phone. The volunteer arrives by foot, bicycle, e-bike or ambu-cycle generally within three minutes to begin treatment before the ambulance arrives.
These community-based emergency caregivers (CBECs) are certified and equipped with comprehensive rescue bags, a defibrillator and a neon orange vest. They are ready to respond to 911 medical calls in an all-hazards approach. This may involve the use of CPR, oxygen and a defibrillator. They are trained to treat victims of choking, bleeding, heart attacks and strokes, and other severe traumas. The only thing the CBECs will not do is work a potentially unsafe scene.
United Rescue provides the technology, helps source the capital and supports volunteer recruitment and training efforts. The program is administered by the local emergency authorities in each city.
Further, United Rescue is 100% funded by local philanthropists, foundations, corporations, and national supporters. The cost of United Rescue to participating cities is $0 and the cost of comprehensive GPS-enabled ambulance is roughly equivalent to $1 per citizen per year.
United Rescue is based on the medical group United Hatzalah in Israel, which was founded in 2006 by Eli Beer. They currently have over 2,500 volunteers that respond to 75% of all the emergency calls in Israel. In urban areas, 250,000 people are treated each year with a response time of under three minutes.
When Dr. Mehmet Oz visited United Hatzalah headquarters in Jerusalem, he said, “I have never seen anything like this before. The combination of advanced technology and such a dedicated volunteer corps is amazing to see. All these volunteers need is a smartphone and they are able to lead their lives while saving lives.”
Fadi Bahir, an Arab United Hatzalah volunteer, was also amazed at how these volunteers put aside politics to save lives.
“It is an unusual sight: Arabs wearing orange vests printed with the red Star of David teaming up with Orthodox Jews,” Bahir said. “And the partners have only praise for each other.”
In 2014, United Rescue came to the U.S. where it began in Jersey City, founded by Mark Gerson, and it was met with great approval. Mayor Steven Fulop said, “We are excited to be the first city in the United States to launch such an innovative, life-saving program. When every second matters, we want to deliver the fastest, best medical service to our residents. This program leverages people who are there and recognizes that people are inherently good and want to help.”
United Rescue US’s second program is currently taking place at Englewood Health. The first orientation session began on Sept. 19 in the Chiang Auditorium, led by Sposa. Sposa formerly headed the United Rescue Program in Jersey City where he was in charge of EMS services.
The United Rescue program at Englewood Health will use 20 instructors from the hospital as well as other emergency medical experts such as Englewood Fire Department Capt. Jeff Kaplan.
Before the meeting began, refreshments were served, and the 25 volunteers who had come greeted each other and spoke to the instructors. Some volunteers are already experienced in CPR and rescue techniques, such as Dr. Lisa Wisotsky and EMT RJ Clemor, who previously headed the ambulance corps in Englewood Cliffs, whereas others were totally new to the field. But, all were enthused and eager to save lives.
Rescue neophytes Englewood residents Karen and Milton Sonneberg said they signed up for the United Rescue program because they have a strong commitment to community service.
“My parents were Holocaust survivors and they have done a lot of volunteer work,” Karen said, “and father was a volunteer policeman when we lived in Nassau County. So, gratitude and giving back is our family’s ethic.”
At 7 p.m., Sposa opened the meeting by introducing his peers and gave an overview of the United Rescue program.
Molly Leader, program manager of United Rescue US, was also on hand, as were special guests Rabbi Chaim Poupko and Englewood Mayor Michael Wildes. Wildes is a 27-year veteran of Hatzalah in Manhattan and very proud of his service.
“I was on an American Airlines flight when a woman was having a CVA (cerebrovascular accident) stroke, and I have also had the privilege of delivering two babies,” Wildes said. “This training is invaluable!
“At its core, we are an example to others,” Wildes continued. “And, the whole notion of what they say in my religion, “Tikkun Olam” (Hebrew for “repairing the world”), is done with your hands. I think that as we get older, our children will look to what their fathers and mothers do, and what this organization at its helm teaches us to do is so beautiful.”
Other speakers at the meeting were Englewood Health Paramedic Josh Hartman, a Hatzalah volunteer in Israel and one of the United Rescue course instructors.
Harvey Weber, Englewood Health’s vice president of facilities management and emergency preparedness, gave brief remarks expressing his excitement about the upcoming program and then invited everyone to come to the stage for a group photo.
From the initial meeting on Sept. 20, it was clear that Englewood Health’s United Rescue program will be taught by some of the area’s leading medical experts and guided by Sposa’s enthusiastic conviction that, “If you’re at the right place at the right time, you can make all the difference in the world!”
Hillary Viders is an EMT, a diving medical technician and member of the Undersea and Hyperbaric Medical Society.
