Sunday kicks off EMS week… This year’s EMS Week theme is EMS Strong: Ready Today. Preparing for Tomorrow. This theme is particularly meaningful as we see the EMS community rallying today to support the COVID-19 crisis, while still responding to the everyday emergencies that are happening in our communities.

 

Unfortunately, due to the COVID-19 restrictions, we are unable to host the usual cookouts and other events at local hospitals. We will be highlighting the many EMS agencies in our catchment on our social media pages throughout the week. Still, now more than ever, it is important to remember that a major component of EMS Week is honoring and celebrating our EMS professionals who are supporting the health and well-being of our nation.

 

I'd also like to recognize the NYSDOH Bureau of EMS and Trauma Systems staff, including Director Ryan Greenberg and Deputy Director Steve Dziura, during this EMS week. The dedication of their team members to ensure the success of the EMS system as a whole does not go unnoticed and we appreciate everything they do to support us.

The Community Foundation for Greater Buffalo (CFGB) has recognized how difficult and stressful the current environment is for nonprofit and local governments in the eight counties of WNY to continue to serve the most vulnerable populations among us. Resources, staffing, and up-to-date information can often be in short supply.

 

While the Foundation is not in a position to provide monetary or staffing resources,  they have been coordinating bi-weekly calls with area organizations to develop a structure for sharing information and concerns. They have created  ‘County Information Hubs’ where organizations in each county can virtually come together as a network on a bi-weekly basis to share and coordinate resources. We are extremely thankful to the Foundation for coordinating this bi-weekly call.