GARDNER — During these unprecedented times of self-quarantine and social distancing, there are still a few professions that involve getting up close and personal with residents who are often in distress — namely, firefighters, EMTs and other first responders.
These men and women are working on the front lines of the current COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic, and some of them have had to make certain adjustments to protect themselves and the residents they serve.
“We’ve taken a few steps,” said Gardner Fire Chief Richard Ares. “Probably the biggest one affecting the public is that we have closed the fire station to the general public, at least until further notice. We’re trying to keep everyone has healthy as possible.”
In addition to screening all 911 calls to find out if firefighters or EMTs would be responding to an individual who was showing symptoms or who may have been exposed to someone with symptoms, Ares said his employees are using all of the necessary protective equipment and gear to decrease their own chance of exposure to the virus. And just like everyone is (or should be) doing, he said fire personnel are taking extra precautions to ensure their workspace is a virus-free area.
“We are taking steps to clean and disinfect the firehouse a few times a day, because obviously we want to make sure our staff stays are as healthy as possible so we can provide service to the public,” Ares said.
Officials are urging anyone who calls 911, or for an ambulance directly because they have a fever, dry cough or are experiencing other flu-like symptoms, to notify the dispatcher immediately.
“And even if they call for something else like a fire alarm, if there’s someone in the house that’s quarantined, let us know so that at least we can take the proper precautions,” Ares said. “We’re still going to come, we’re still going to respond to their emergency, but we can take specific precautions based on the potential health threat.”
Ares also pointed out that while all of these new precautions and guidelines might be new to the general public, they remain a normal safety routine for first responders.
“We’re used to wearing protective equipment, we do it all the time, so this is a matter of just ramping up protective equipment that’s just a little bit different, but we’re used to using respirators, putting on the rubber gloves, and that sort of thing,” Ares said. “So it’s not as much of a learning curve for us to don personal protective equipment because we do it every day anyway.”
Andrew Gibbs, the human resources manager for Wood’s Ambulance in Gardner, agreed, saying that his employees are following guidelines already in place while dealing with the current coronavirus pandemic.
“We have established protocols for tuberculosis patients or any other patients with infectious diseases, so we are already utilizing established procedures,” Gibbs explained, adding that his company is also actively reviewing its administrative policies to assist its employees when it comes to informing the public about hand hygiene and other health precautions they can take to help prevent the spread of the virus. “There’s been a lot of communication going on, which is good.”
Gibbs reiterated that anyone calling for emergency services should immediately notify the dispatcher if they or if anyone else in their household is displaying any symptoms of COVID-19.
“It’s very important that they let us know if they have a fever or a dry cough or just difficulty breathing, it’s very important they let the dispatcher know that so they can communicate it to the crew, because a lot of the times we’re not going into emergency scenes with full protective gear on, but if we know (the information) ahead of time, we can be prepared for it,” Gibbs said.
Gibbs said the biggest challenge currently facing his crews is the shortage of protective gear, in particular the N95 respirator masks.
“We’ve noticed that every single medical supplier is out because the public has purchased quite a few of them, so it’s making it hard for us to find extra supplies,” explained Gibbs, who added that most people don’t understand that training is required to use the mask properly. “The N95 mask isn’t for the person who is sick, it’s for the provider. A regular surgical mask is fine to go on the person that is sick, but the N95 mask filters out everything for the provider who is in the vicinity of the person who is sick.”
Although his department has transported some individuals who were suspected of coming into contact with the coronavirus, Ares said the number of people has been fairly low. He said he believes that Greater Gardner residents are heeding the advice of professional health officials and doing their part to self-isolate during the crisis.
“I think people may have symptoms so they call their own physician because they don’t want to overwhelm the ambulance services or the emergency rooms,” Ares said. He said some doctors have been directing certain patients to a remote testing site at Heywood Hospital.
Ares said he thinks that Gardner residents are handling the current crisis about as well as could be hoped under the circumstances.
“I think both the city government and all the city departments are all working together, and I think the citizens, from what I’ve seen, are taking this seriously — as they should — and doing the things that officials are suggesting about the social distancing and cutting back on gatherings and that sort of thing,” Ares said.
By the way, residents might want to note another casualty of the coronavirus shutdown — the Gardner Fire Department has stopped doing routing home inspections until further notice, according to Ares, who added that certain exemptions could be made in emergency situations.
“But we stopped doing the routine checks for home sales and other things, at least until we see where this is going,” Ares said.
