Powell River Community First Aid team appeared before qathet Regional District’s (qRD) finance committee earlier this month seeking funds for its operation. Karyn O’Keefe, president of the first aid team, said her organization was looking for help with expenses.
Team member Larry Gemmill said the community team is the successor to St. John Ambulance after it shut down in this community.
“We provide initial first aid coverage for community events,” said Gemmill. “Prior to COVID-19, we did 22 event days and when COVID-19 hit, we were reduced to 13. For the next couple of years we were non-operational. We completed 30 event days this year, so we’ve come back quite well.
“We treated 62 patients this year. For most events, people behave themselves and nobody gets hurt. Our most entertaining day was the track and field event. We had 14 that particular day.”
Gemmill said volunteer time put in by the first aid team this year was 497.5 hours. The team has acquired the original St. John Ambulance ambulance that was turned over to City of Powell River when St. John Ambulance left, he added.
“It was offered to us for a dollar,” said Gemmill. “We want to restock and refurbish the vehicle.
“We had two events this year that were double-booked. We will be using that second ambulance, and we will put it on the road for those particular double-booked events, and it’s a backup for our main ambulance.”
Gemmill said the first aid team was requesting $509 out of a $3,200 budget. Other planned expenses include an automated external defibrillator (AED) for the new first aid vehicle, AED battery and pads, blood pressure cuffs, stethoscopes, radios, visi-vests, insurance and miscellaneous first aid supplies.
O’Keefe said she suspected directors had seen the first aid team at public events.
“It’s fun to go to these things,” said O’Keefe. “It’s a service we offer the community and it’s beneficial. St. John Ambulance was around for a long time and then they left, so there was nothing. We offer tremendous service to the community.”
qRD Electoral Area A director Jason Lennox said that volunteers had been mentioned in the application and that it is hard to retain volunteers, but the team appears to have a decent complement now providing the service. According to the application, there are currently 13 volunteers with the community first aid team.
The finance committee recommended that the regional board provide a $509 grant to the first aid team for general operating costs.
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