EMS Gets Advance Look, Talks Safety at Indiana Factory

Pharos-Tribune, Logansport, Ind.

Cass County Emergency Medical Services was impressed when they toured the Waelz Sustainable Products (WSP) factory on Wednesday to discuss safety protocols, detail emergency responses and develop a comprehensive plan for EMS responders.

"They actually hold themselves to a higher standard than OSHA would," said Cass County EMS paramedic Alex Donathen. "Instead of 6 feet, they have to harness up any time they go over 4 (feet). Everybody on the scene is CPR- and first aid-trained by their emergency staff working there."

Michael Englert, general manager of the Cass County WSP Plant, said safety is a top priority. The decision to mandate CPR and automated external defibrillator (AED) training for all employees was a simple one.

"We explained it to employees, 'You may be out somewhere, and you might be the only person around who knows how to use that device or how to save somebody's life.'" Englert said. "It doesn't just help us. It can benefit other people. That was really our reasoning behind training everybody."

The factory also has units that respond to situations in areas where respirators are required. Englert said regulations in those areas are very strict. Since some EMS personnel might not be able to enter those areas, the safety units decontaminate injured employees and take them to first responders.

"The fact they're willing to do all of that before we ever touch the patient is huge for us," said Cass County EMS Director Mikel Fort.

Donathen said he likes WSP's safety plans because all WSP crews have radios, the plant has extra EMS tools and negative airflow fans, and there are clear guidelines on where EMS employees should be and how WSP employees should handle various situations.

"The fact that they're bringing them (to us), they're decontaminating them, and we don't have to guess or expose any of our people or equipment to it is pretty nice," he said.

He also noted that the factory is highly automated, so employees do not frequently have to enter zones that could become contaminated. Just in case, WSP completes quarterly blood draws to ensure employees are not being exposed to toxins.

"There's no guesswork. We don't have to do anything on the fly," said Cass County EMT Jeffrey Reeder. "We already know what's going on. And on top of that, their health and safety director has experience and worked on ambulances and fire trucks for 24 years."

Fort said having that knowledge before emergency situations arise is especially helpful because there are many times when EMS is called to a business but has no knowledge of that business's operations.

"If we go in for a farm incident and it's organophosphate poisoning, and we don't know that's what it is, and we put the patient in the back of the ambulance, we're contaminated," Fort said. "If we're contaminated, we have an issue because now we have three patients instead of one."

Contamination can also decommission ambulances for days, weeks or even months depending on the substance and the level of contamination. Fort said WSP's decontamination procedures take a weight off the EMS program's shoulders.

"I don't see any issue with it," Reeder said. "It's probably a lot safer than basically every factory and manufacturer in Lafayette."

Englert said there has been a lot of community mistrust toward WSP, but the company is doing its best to be a good partner to the community and prove its commitment to safety and sustainability.

"We're doing everything we can to protect anyone working here and the environment," he said.

Cass County EMS employees said they feel much better about responding to WSP after the tour and learning about the company's safety procedures. Fort, Reeder and Donathen said they wish every business in the county could plan and share their emergency protocols in a similar way.

"It's kind of nice seeing how much work is going into containing it, how many people they're looking at having on staff and how they deal with things," Donathen said. "The fact they are directly working with fire and EMS services in the area so we're aware is nice."