By JAN LARSON McLAUGHLIN
BG Independent News
Hearing all the sirens blaring at Wood County Hospital Wednesday evening, an emergency room physician living nearby thought there must have been a disaster, and came in early for his shift.
But what he found was a parade of grateful fire, EMS and police personnel who wanted to thank the staff at Wood County Hospital as COVID cases continue to rise.
“This has been a super stressful time,” said Dawn MacKay, a registered nurse in the emergency department. Adding to the stress, she said, has been the fact that patients are having to be boarded in the ER until other beds become available in the hospital.
As the emergency vehicles circled the hospital, with lights flashing and sirens blaring, the ER staff stood outside, holding their own signs of thanks for the first responders.
“This is a nice gesture,” MacKay said.
Katie Frank, director of emergency services at Wood County Hospital, stood outside with her children to watch the parade of vehicles.
“Some of us brought our families,” she said.
“Some of these nurses are here on their days off,” Frank added.
The effort by the first responders was appreciated.
“It’s been very, very challenging these last few months,” Frank said.
The parade of emergency vehicles was organized by members of the Weston Township Fire Department.
“COVID is getting really bad again,” said Weston Township Fire Chief Justin Selders, who stood watching the vehicles drive by with Fire Lt. Steve Miller and firefighter/EMT Allyson Goris.
“We want them to know we’re still here for them,” Selders said. “They work hard for everybody.”
Wood County Hospital has had to go on bypass for ambulance traffic multiple times recently due to staffing shortages caused by COVID. Selders said the Weston EMS has frequently had to take patients to hospitals further away in Findlay, Henry County or Perrysburg Mercy.
That also creates hardships for EMS providers, since runs that would typically take an hour or so now take as long as three hours, Selders said.
In addition to Weston Township Fire and EMS, other departments sending emergency vehicles to parade around Wood County Hospital Wednesday included Middleton Township Fire, Washington Township Fire, Perrysburg Township Fire, Wood County Emergency Management Agency, Bowling Green Police Division, and the Wood County Sheriff’s Office. Bowling Green Fire Division was unable to attend because of a fire run.
“Working the front lines, we understand the impact that COVID has placed on our communities and resources. We would like to remind each and every one within the medical field that you are not alone,” the organizers wrote.
