Providence Monitoring Potential Spread of Swine Flu

 

Mayor David N. Cicilline this week announced that the City’s Department of Emergency Management (PEMA) is closely monitoring the Swine Flu outbreak and is prepared to mobilize if necessary.  Yesterday, the Mayor also issued a message to residents:

“Dear Residents:
 
I wanted to make sure you have the latest accurate information about the Swine Influenza (Flu).  The number of cases of Swine Influenza (Flu) reported in the United States has increased over the past week, and we have learned of one potential case in North Kingstown, Rhode Island.  We are working closely with the Providence Emergency Management Agency (PEMA), the Providence School District and State officials to ensure that we are ready to respond appropriately.  While we are taking every necessary precaution, we have not been advised to enact emergency measures at this time.  We will continue to monitor occurrences of illness, as well as reinforce the importance of preventive behaviors.
 
Swine Flu symptoms include fever, sore throat, cough, body aches, headaches, chills, and fatigue.  The illness may last up to seven days, and people are considered to be contagious as long as symptoms persist.  If you or your child are showing mild flu-like symptoms, we recommend that you consult with your health care provider right away.
 
Prevention is the best defense against the spread of Swine Flu and stay healthy.
 
Useful Tips:
· Sneeze or cough into a tissue, elbow or sleeve. Throw the tissue in the trash  immediately after its use.
· Wash your hands often with soap and water, especially after coughing or sneezing. Alcohol-based hands cleaners are also effective.
· Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth. Germs spread that way.
· If you or your child are sick, you should contact your health provider and stay home.
 
Look out for the following symptoms: fever (temperature 100 degrees or higher), vomiting or diarrhea, blistery rash, heavy nasal congestion or frequent cough, and if your child has been diagnosed with a contagious disease.  If you have any questions, please contact your health care provider right away.
 
Sincerely,
Mayor Cicilline”
 
The Providence School Department has directed its nursing staff to closely monitor the situation in the schools and the Mayor’s Office of Senior Services has been in contact with the City’s nursing homes and senior centers. 
 
Although the mass distribution of medication is not anticipated at this time, PEMA has in place a state approved Medical Emergency Distribution System (MEDS) Plan that can be activated at a moment's notice.
 
PEMA Director Peter T. Gaynor cautions residents to beware of companies selling so-called “Swine Flu Kits” at inflated prices.  He says scams are common during public emergencies, and the Director encourages people to contact the RI Health Department at (401) 222-8020 or the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for more information.

For additional information visit: http://www.cdc.gov/swineflu/  

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RI Center for Innovation & Entrepreneurship (RI-CIE) Opens Its Doors      

Community hub for entrepreneurship and new ideas located at One Davol Square

 

Watch the video at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E2t3IvyUUuQ

 

The Rhode Island Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship — RI-CIE, a new facility designed to help train and develop future entrepreneurs —opened its doors this past Tuesday, April 28th, at One Davol Square, where it will occupy 5,000 square feet of space.

 

Mayor David Cicilline was one of several state and city officials who joined the business and academic community in celebrating its opening.

 

“The RI-CIE is an important building block for growing new jobs and businesses that will benefit the city and beyond. It is a key asset in making the Jewelry District our central platform for growing 21st-century companies in Providence,” the Mayor said. “I am grateful to Brown and RIEDC for taking the lead on this Center and for being great partners in our vision for the future.”

 

The City of Providence has been working closely with the Chamber of Commerce,  colleges, universities and hospitals, as well as businesses both large and small, to better leverage existing assets, foster business opportunities and accelerate job creation in the rapidly growing knowledge economy. The RI-CIE will play an important role in supporting the Mayor’s goals for job creation and local economic growth, as detailed in his Operation Opportunity initiative.

 

RI-CIE’s grand opening comes after more than a year of planning and collaboration among government, academic, and business leaders.  The Rhode Island Economic Development Corporation and Brown worked with state officials, the City of Providence, Greater Providence Chamber of Commerce, and other partners to develop RI-CIE. Many other organizations including educational institutions, hospitals, and economic development groups have also expressed their support.

 

RI-CIE is part of a multi-agency effort to grow new jobs and businesses in Rhode Island. The effort is meant to dovetail with city and state efforts already underway, aimed at harnessing existing resources related to the Knowledge Economy Initiative. The initiative, which grew out of an October 2008 report released by the Greater Providence Chamber of Commerce, cited “strengthening entrepreneurial connectivity” as a key area of focus.

 

The Rhode Island Economic Development Corporation, the Rhode Island Science and Technology Advisory Council, and the Slater Technology Fund have supplied seed money for the venture, including a $100,000 investment for the first year of operations and $100,000 for the second. Brown will pay real estate and space costs plus staff salaries and benefits for the center’s first two years. RI-CIE is also seeking private-sector financing and sponsorships as it ramps up programs.

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Mayor Cicilline to Announce Initiative Designed to Prepare Providence Residents for Good Paying Jobs      

News conference on Monday, April 4 at 10:30am in the carpenter’s shop at the new Providence Career & Technical Academy

Mayor David N. Cicilline will join Providence School Superintendent Thomas M. Brady for a news conference announcing the Providence Jobs Initiative on Monday, April 4 at 10:30am in the carpenter’s shop at the Providence Career & Technical Academy, located at Fricker and Cranston Streets.

The new job-training program is part of Operation Opportunity, an economic action plan launched by Mayor Cicilline in February to place an unprecedented focus on expanding job opportunities for Providence residents.

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 Mayor & City Council Host Providence Tomorrow Neighborhood Charrette      

Weeklong workshops exploring West End, Federal Hill and Reservoir issues to begin Monday, May 4th at Federal Hill House

Mayor David N. Cicilline and the Providence City Council announced plans for the 9th Providence Tomorrow Neighborhood Charrette for the West End, Federal Hill and Reservoir neighborhoods on May 4 – 7 at the Federal Hill House, on 9 Courtland Street.

The Charrette will kick off on May 4 from 6pm to 8pm with a Neighborhood Visioning Session followed by a full week of free and public workshops.  A detailed schedule and information about the workshops is available at www.providencetomorrow.org or by calling (401) 351-4300.

Residents and merchants from the West End, Federal Hill and Reservoir neighborhoods are encouraged to attend the following workshops to share their ideas about what their neighborhood should be like in the future: 

Monday, May 4 
11:30 am – 1:30 pm Historic Preservation
2 pm – 4 pm Mobility, Circulation & Parking   
6 pm – 8 pm Charrette Kick off & Neighborhood Visioning with elected officials

Tuesday, May 5 
9 am – 11 am Commercial corridors
11:30 am – 1:30 pm Parks, Open Space and Recreation
2 pm – 4 pm  Neighborhood Youth
6 pm – 8 pm  Neighborhood Character & Land use

Wednesday, May 6   
9 am – 11 am  Infrastructure
11:30 am – 1:30 pm Housing
2 pm – 4 pm  Open Studio
6 pm – 8 pm  Schools

Thursday, May 7 
9 am- 4 pm  Team Work Day (studio open, no planned sessions, but input invited)
5 pm  - 7 pm  Final presentation

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Feature: My City

Just a Heartbeat Away from Saving Lives
 

When you or a loved one suffers from a heart attack or some kind of serious physical trauma and you call 9-1-1, chances are the first responders will be the men and women of the Providence Fire Department.  But up until recently, the fire division better known as EMS, or emergency medical services, was unable to adequately treat patients suffering from heart attacks on the scene.  

Today, thanks to funding from the Fire Act Grant, the fleet of fire and rescue engine companies in Providence can finally operate as licensed Advanced Life Support (ALS) vehicles, outfitted with the same 12-Lead EKG (electrocardiography) devices that most hospitals use to diagnose and monitor cardiac conditions.  

City News caught up with EMS Division and Deputy Assistant Chief Jeffrey Crawford to learn more about how these new lifesaving machines put Providence Rescue Units just heartbeat away from saving lives.

Tell us about the new additions to our fire engines.
The recent acquisition of the 12-Lead EKG (electrocardiography) machines through the Fire Act Grant have enabled us to license our trucks as Advanced Life Support (ALS) vehicles with the capability of doing 12-Lead monitoring, which is diagnostic quality monitoring.  Basically, it’s the same monitoring they use in the hospitals to discover and treat heart attacks.  If we can determine when and where a heart attack is occurring, by the time the patient gets to the hospital, the hospital can get the patient directly to a Cath Lab, which is where they can insert wiring into the heart, open up the artery, and restore blood flow.  It limits the amount of damage done to the heart and in most cases, if you can get there quickly enough, the patient can leave the hospital fully recovered and back to where they were before the heart attack.  

Before we installed the 12-Lead EKG machines into our engine companies, none of our trucks had any means by which to monitor patients’ heart activity at all.   They weren’t even licensed EMS (emergency medical services)-response vehicles.  They were just first responder fire trucks.  Previously, we could do an EMS run but legally, we couldn’t do anything on the scene because we didn’t have the equipment to do that.

How many engines are equipped with this machine now?
We have 14 engines total, one of them our Special Hazards truck.  Thirteen of them are now equipped with the new EKG machines.   The Fire Department currently runs 5 rescues, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week; in addition we currently run a discretionary 6th rescue full time also 24/7.  So all units are now ALS capable.  

Why are these machines important to have? How do they enhance the quality of services that the fire department provides?
Heart attack is the number one killer in this country. Nationwide right now, there is a push by the American Heart Association, physician groups, and all hospital-related enterprises for what they call a ‘Door-to-Balloon’ time of 90 minutes and under.  ‘Door-to-Balloon’ time is a term used to describe the moment that a patient crosses the threshold of the emergency room, is diagnosed, treated and on the Cath table getting that wire inserted into the coronary artery where blood flow is restored into the heart.  

The 90-minute window has been scientifically proven to enhance the rate of survival and recovery of heart attack victims.  So if we can cut that ‘Door-to-Balloon’ time, we can keep our citizens as productive as possible, and help our country as a whole be in a better place.  

By having 12-Lead EKG capability in our engines now, we can determine a heart attack in the field, notify the hospitals in advance of arrival to the ER and enable them to spin up their ER and Cath Lab.  I have two letters from RI Hospital, from one doctor and a nurse, who witnessed this procedure within the last few weeks.  Our people in the field responded to two STEMI (ST segment elevation myocardial infarction) heart attack calls.  They notified the hospital, transported the patients to the hospital after treating them, and the patients were in the Cath Lab getting treated within 30 minutes, which is unheard of.  We are leading the way in this procedure.  And in some cases, we are shattering records.  By the way, both patients walked out of the hospital fully recovered.  

Explain the difference between an ambulance and fire rescue?
There is a distinction between an ambulance and a rescue.  Rescues respond to 9-1-1 calls; ambulances do not.  You can call an ambulance company on your own if you want.  For instance, if you are a dialysis patient who needs to have regular visits to the hospital for treatment you can arrange to have an ambulance pick you up and drop you off for those visits.  

Take the same dialysis patient having an atypical medical problem, say a heart attack, then you call 9-1-1.  When you call 9-1-1, you are asked a few questions.  Your answers determine the type of response that is dispatched.  If it is a probable event that requires an Advanced Life Support unit, they will dispatch a fire engine company and a rescue truck.  So you will usually have a fire engine show up first at your doorstep and that unit will stabilize you until the rescue comes and takes over.  In Rhode Island, EMS is tied to the fire department.  That’s why it’s important that our firefighters get trained and retrained to keep their skills up.  That’s why life-saving devices like these new EKG machines are critical to what we do.

How many members of the fire department are trained in using these EKG machines?
There are 40 members in the EMS Division, all trained in using the EKG monitors.  Our entire cardiac unit, approximately 280 members, is now also trained to use these machines.  We had an expert, Mr. Tim Phelan, come into the department and train all our people.  He has trained over 65,000 EMTs around the country.  The usage of these machines will now be part of our ongoing training.  

The addition of these new EKG devices really brings us closer to building a 21st century fire department, and in this case, the improvement in services, mobility and response times can actually save lives.  In your opinion, what does it take to build a 21st century fire department?
First of all, it takes dedicated individuals.  After that, it requires the proper equipment.  It takes a fully integrated EMS unit, meaning from the time an initial call is made to 9-1-1 to the time the patient is discharged from the hospital, all emergency response units – EMS, hospital EEGs and hospital intake and discharge – have to be integrated.  I see us providing more and more services pre-hospital and in some cases, treating patients pre-hospital so that patients wouldn’t have to be taken to the hospital.  

As a commander of the EMS Division, what do you want Providence neighbors to know about health and safety?
I think people need to realize that the EMS system in general is taxed to the limit.  So, if a neighbor or a citizen doesn’t think, in any way, that they’re having an emergency or it’s a minor call and they can get themselves to the hospital, I recommend they do that.  That’s because when a rescue unit has to respond to a minor call, that’s one less unit available to treat the major calls, which we have a lot of in Providence.  There’s a sizable number of heart attack and trauma calls in our city.  We get the majority of these major calls in the state and it’s our fire and rescue units that respond to the majority of those calls.  

What do you like most about your job?
Day to day, you just don’t know what you’ll be faced with.  The uncertainty of the job is what I like most.   

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