The pre-hospital transfusion program began Monday, when Eureka-Goodfield EMS received two units of type O-positive red blood cells and two units of plasma from the ImpactLife distribution hub in Peoria. Two Eureka-Goodfield EMS ambulances will now always carry red blood cells and plasma.

Matthew Jackson, MD, medical director of pre-hospital and EMS at OSF HealthCare, also serves as medical director for Eureka-Goodfield EMS and Peoria Area EMS. He helped shape the pre-hospital transfusion program for Eureka-Goodfield, the first ground ambulance service in Illinois to carry blood components on board its ambulances. He describes pre-hospital transfusion as a growing area of patient care that lies at the intersection of emergency medical service and transfusion medicine.

“Bleeding from an uncontrolled hemorrhage is a leading cause of preventable death among trauma patients,” Jackson said. “Every minute counts for these patients, so receiving blood products from trained first responders can significantly improve survival, reduce the length of hospital stays and help decrease the overall use of blood once patients arrive at the emergency department.”

“We are truly honored and excited to be the first ground-based EMS service to carry blood in Illinois,” said Eureka-Goodfield EMS Division Chief Randy Wolfe. “This milestone reflects Eureka-Goodfield EMS’ commitment to innovation and patient care. Carrying blood on our ambulances allows our medics to deliver critical lifesaving care sooner, closing the gap between rural emergencies and definitive care for the entire region.”

January is National Blood Donor Month ImpactLife provides blood components used by 26 air and ground ambulance services in Illinois, Iowa, Missouri and Wisconsin. Eureka-Goodfield EMS is served by the ImpactLife distribution hub in Peoria, which also provides blood components for OSF HealthCare Saint Francis Medical Center, Carle Health Methodist Hospital, Graham Health System in Canton, and OSF and Carle hospitals in Galesburg, Bloomington, and Urbana.

ImpactLife invites communities across its service region to Put Good Into the World as supporters of our region's blood supply in 2026. This January, ImpactLife joins blood providers across the U.S. in celebrating blood donors, blood drive coordinators, and volunteers during January's National Blood Donor Month.

The first National Blood Donor Month was recognized in 1970, following a proclamation by President Richard Nixon and a Joint Resolution of the U.S. Congress. The month-long recognition pays tribute to volunteer blood donors and encourages new donors to join the cause during a season that can present some of the greatest challenges for our region’s blood supply. Extreme weather, seasonal illness, and the need to recover donations lost during the busy holiday season all contribute to the challenges blood providers face during the month of January.

The blood center invites donors to support the region’s blood supply by scheduling appointments for donation at its Peoria Donor Center and on mobile blood drives held across central Illinois. To book an appointment, call ImpactLife at (800) 747-5401, visit www.bloodcenter.org, or download the ImpactLife mobile app at www.bloodcenter.org/app.

When it comes to ambulances and the services they provide, Lisa Reid, APRN, knows a thing or two because she’s seen a thing or two.

The family medicine provider at OSF HealthCare was an ambulance first responder for more than 15 years before moving to the nursing side of things. As such, she’s heard a lot of “Should I do this or that?” when calling an ambulance. Now, it’s time to clear up the misconceptions.

• Who’s coming to get me? Should I be concerned about their qualifications?
  
  Reid says different first responders can do different things, but you can be assured you’ll get the care you need.
  
  “Paramedics have more training in life-saving skills. They can do things like intubation [putting a tube down your throat to help breathing] and give intravenous [IV] medications," Reid explains. "Emergency medical technicians [EMTs] provide more basic care. They help stabilize the person and get them ready for transport. They also usually drive.”
   
• Where should I wait?
  
  Reid says if you’re hurt or ill, it doesn’t make sense to drag yourself to the curb to wait for the flashing lights. Changing locations could also waste precious time as the first responders look for you. So, stay where you are. If you’re inside, unlock the door if you can. If you can’t, Reid says first responders can get to you. For example, firefighters or police officers often go on medical calls and can break down doors or otherwise keep the scene safe.
   
• Do I need to share my health information and directives to get care?

Again, Reid says, do it if you can. But it won’t delay the on-scene care if you can’t.

“Some people put the information on their cell phone. Some people hang the documents on their refrigerator,” Reid says.

You can also fill out your health record with your health system in advance of an emergency – things such as allergies and advanced directives – so providers know what to do when you arrive.

• Can I expect care in my home? Will I go in the ambulance right away? Or both?
  
  Each case is different, but if the situation calls for it, ambulance workers can and will treat you on-scene.
  
  “If it’s a critical situation, they will often stabilize you and go [with you in the ambulance]. If it’s something where they can stay and do IVs and monitor you, they will," Reid says.
  
  The responders might even determine you don’t need a trip to the hospital.
   
• Vehicle rides are bumpy. How can they treat me safely in an ambulance?
  
  Reid admits the ride can be scary. You’re surrounded by equipment and noise. But EMTs and paramedics are trained to do things like give IV fluids while rolling down the road.
  
  Don’t expect to undergo surgery in the ambulance, Reid says. But she says it’s also common for responders to give medication, intubate and perform CPR in the vehicle.
  
  “It’s a mini emergency department on wheels,” she says.
   
• I arrived in an ambulance, so I must get priority when I get to the emergency department.
  
  “Not always true,” Reid says.
  
  “The ED is going to prioritize their emergencies based on the need for care. So to call an ambulance solely because you think you’ll be first in line – that won’t necessarily be true,” she adds.

Learn more

Read more about how emergency medical services serve you on the OSF HealthCare website.

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Les Mennenga, an OSF HealthCare Mission Partner (employee) and lead educator for East Central Illinois EMS (emergency medical services), runs Bryson Freehill and Andy Lubben through a scenario in a training ambulance. The patient, a manikin named Noelle, is complaining of a terrible headache. Freehill also notices a bulge in the manikin’s belly.

“Is she pregnant?” he asks.

“She is,” says Mennenga, standing by with a tablet that controls elements of the scenario.

And the men get to work.

Becoming a first responder

Mennenga oversees training for the three levels of ambulance responders – emergency medical responder, emergency medical technician basic and paramedic – plus nurses who work in the field or answer EMS calls in the emergency department.

“Anybody who wants to get into the world of EMS has to work with some sort of education facility,” Mennenga says. “We’re one of those.”

There’s no college degree requirement, but plenty of initial and continuing education is part of the job. Plus, you become familiar with medical best practices, all stored on a smartphone app you can access quickly in the field.

There’s no debating that the job is stressful, but it’s rewarding and usually well-paying, Mennenga says.

“We’re going to be on calls where it’s potentially a person’s worst day of their life. We have an opportunity to make a difference,” Mennenga says. “We may see something that’s traumatic. We need to understand who we can turn to talk about that.”

Noelle’s fate

Freehill and Lubben ended up treating Noelle for eclampsia, or high blood pressure during pregnancy, which led to a seizure. No critical errors in their treatment, Mennenga told the pair in a debriefing.

“We tend to do scenarios that are not common in the field or a call in the last year that had an issue with a real patient,” Mennenga says. “So we may find an area where there could be improvement. Now we’ll put it into practice and see if other people have the same issue. Is it something we need to include in initial education?”

If you’re interested in this line of work, Mennenga suggests contacting your local EMS agency or volunteer fire department. Before enrolling in a class, try observing one or doing an ambulance ride-along.

“See the realism of treating patients in the field,” Mennenga says.

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When talking about the opioid crisis in America, you don’t have to explain much to Howard Marsh.

A first responder for nearly a half century, Marsh has gone on numerous ambulance calls for a suspected overdose.

“It breaks my heart,” says the Advanced Medical Transport paramedic. “I just can’t believe people do this to their bodies.”

New federal data show nearly 108,000 people died of an overdose in 2022. That's up slightly from 2021. It’s a time to know the facts and misconceptions about overdoses, their causes and ways to reverse the deadly effects. One such way is naloxone, known under the brand name Narcan, a medication that has become more available in recent years to both first responders and everyday citizens.

“It’s really a good drug to have around,” Marsh says.

Narcan basics

Les Mennenga is lead educator for East Central Illinois Emergency Medical Services (EMS), an OSF HealthCare organization that trains ambulance workers. He describes Narcan as an opioid antagonist that helps reverse the effects of dangerous drugs like fentanyl, morphine, heroin and Tramadol.

“If we get too much of those medications in our system, they’ll bind with receptor sites in our brain. They’ll slow our breathing and pulse rate down,” Mennenga says. “They can actually stop the signal to our diaphragm and make us stop breathing.”

Conversely, he says, “Narcan gets to those receptor sites, competes with the opioid and will knock it off. It will help the person restore their breathing.”

Mennenga says Narcan does not work with methamphetamine, cocaine and other non-opioids.

At the scene of a suspected overdose, typically the first bits of information come from friends or family of the ailing person. Those people likely know if the person has a history with a certain drug, for example. First responders will also look for drug paraphernalia like needles. Mennenga says if the person is still alert and breathing, they would not qualify for Narcan.

“The only time we should be administering Narcan is if they’re having difficulty breathing,” Mennenga says. “They’ll be unresponsive, snoring-like respirations or not breathing at all.”

Blue lips are another sign, Marsh says.

There are three ways to give Narcan: through a shot into the muscle; intravenous therapy, commonly known as an IV; and the most common and simple way, Mennenga says, is a nasal spray. Mennenga adds that Narcan may be combined with cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) or a bag valve mask to help restore breathing.

Mennenga says once the person comes to, they might experience withdrawal symptoms like nausea, vomiting or, in rare cases, a seizure or heart issues. First responders will provide more care as needed.

“Go to the hospital and get checked out,” Marsh advises. “We prefer we take you in case something happens in route.”

What you should know

East Central Illinois EMS has rolled out a Narcan leave behind program. The agency provides kits for first responders to leave with friends, family and others after responding to an overdose. The program serves as a reminder that this is an important issue. Experts say survivors are at high risk for repeated overdoses, and Narcan may be the only chance to save their life.

“Overdoses are quite common, unfortunately,” Mennenga says. “Nobody’s immune to the opioid crisis.”

He says if you want a supply of Narcan at home, contact your local health department for options.

Mennenga also says Narcan, shockingly, has some detractors. He says some people think opioid users need to learn the consequences the hard way. But Mennenga, a veteran of the EMS world, says many people who suffer overdoses aren’t your stereotypical drug user. Their use might have started with an injury, leading to pain medication. Or older adults often mix up pills and take too many.

“If they really want to get some help, we can give them resources like their public health department or the state public health department,” Mennenga says.

Learn more

Websites for the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, the Illinois Department of Public Health and the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services all have information on opioid addiction, treatment and recovery. If you are in crisis, the national Suicide and Crisis Lifeline is 9-8-8.

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“I pour coffee, help the waitresses and hostesses, bring out food,” Lindsey describes.

“I make sure everybody’s happy,” he adds warmly.

But on October 6, 2023, just steps away from the restaurant, Lindsey would have a life-changing moment. He says one minute, he was in a vehicle with his cousin. The next, he was waking up in the hospital.

In between, a good Samaritan who happened to be across the street saved Lindsey’s life, thanks to skills learned at OSF HealthCare and an alert from a smartphone app that OSF brought to Champaign.

“I’m very grateful,” Lindsey says.

Lindsey’s boss, Original Pancake House owner Eric Faulkner, can fill in the gaps of that day.

He says Lindsey’s cousin Charles picked him up from work. As they were driving away, Lindsey was laughing and joking, but suddenly slumped over and became unresponsive. Charles pulled into a shopping center parking lot and asked someone to call 9-1-1.

That’s where Shannon Walter enters the story.

A program manager at the Champaign Park District, Walter got some of her cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) training at OSF. She was across the street getting lunch when she got an alert on her phone: someone close by needs CPR.

“When I pulled into the parking lot, I could see somebody pulling somebody who was unresponsive out of a vehicle and onto the ground,” Walter says.

That was Lindsey, who was in cardiac arrest, where the heart is not able to pump blood properly.

Walter quickly explained she was CPR-certified, observed Lindsey wasn’t breathing and did chest compressions for around three-and-a-half minutes until first responders arrived.

“I believe that is what saved his life and his brain function,” Faulkner says.

Lindsey agrees.

“She’s an angel,” he says. “It makes me feel really blessed. I’m glad she was there.”

Lindsey and Walter’s twist-of-fate encounter shows the importance of a couple life-saving things you can do in just a few minutes, says Kurt Bloomstrand, MD, medical director for East Central Illinois Emergency Medical Services, an OSF organization that trains first responders and CPR instructors.

One, learn CPR. It’s the missing link between when 9-1-1 is called and when first responders arrive. Dr. Bloomstrand says for cardiac arrest outside a hospital, the chance of survival is around 10%. With bystander CPR and use of an automated external defibrillator (AED), the chance increases fivefold.

Dr. Bloomstrand says good Samaritan laws exist to protect people who give first aid.

“You’re not going to hurt the person. You only have an opportunity to help them,” he says.

If you don’t have time for a CPR class, just remember this: push hard and fast on the center of the chest at 100 to 120 beats per minute. Appropriately, that’s the beat of Stayin’ Alive by the Bee Gees. Or if you prefer a more contemporary beat, think of the chorus of The Man by Taylor Swift.

“It’s important to never be caught in a situation where you don’t know what to do,” Walter says.

Two, download the PulsePoint app, the app Walter used to jump into action. PulsePoint is a nationwide app that OSF brought to the Champaign area. It’s active in nearly 5,000 other communities. Dr. Bloomstrand explains that when a 
9-1-1 call is made for cardiac arrest, the dispatcher sends the information to first responders. If PulsePoint is active in that area, the information – scrubbed of specifics to protect privacy – also automatically goes to the app. The app then sends an alert to PulsePoint users that CPR is needed and if an AED is nearby.

The fine print for the alerts: the emergency must be in a public place, and the bystander must be within one-fourth of a mile. And within the app, you must turn on CPR alerts and let the app track your location always, not just when you are using the app. That’s necessary to know anytime CPR is needed near you.

“This is how you, as a lay person, can be a hero, a lifesaver and help somebody in need,” Dr. Bloomstrand says.

Lindsey, meanwhile, is going through rehabilitation at OSF. He also got a pacemaker, a small device that creates electrical currents to keep the heart beating at a normal rhythm.

“I feel wonderful,” he says, adding that he hopes to be pouring coffee for customers again soon.

If you would like to learn in detail how to perform CPR or use an AED, there are several options, including visiting the American Heart Association website, or calling your local hospital to see what training is available. There are two versions of the PulsePoint app for download to your smartphone. PulsePoint Respond alerts you to cardiac arrest, and PulsePoint AED allows you to catalog AEDs around you.

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