Dr. Garth Gemar, M.D. Named Medical Director of Southwest Ambulance
EMS Expert Will Lead State-of-the-Art Critical Care Transport System
(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20090222/LA73816 )
Dr. Gemar’s immediate tasks will be to streamline and unify treatment protocols, provide intensive support to the company’s training programs, and the establishment of state-of-the-art critical care transport units in the
Mr. Sargent stated, “Dr. Gemar has vast experience in Emergency Medical Services (EMS) and is considered a top specialist in pre-hospital EMS critical care. Dr. Gemar is uniquely qualified to aid in the development of new initiatives and streamlining programs already in place at Southwest. We and the communities we serve are very fortunate to have him on board.”
In accepting the new position at Southwest Ambulance, Dr. Gemar stated, “I leapt at the opportunity to become a member of the Southwest Ambulance team. I’ve always had an admiration for their commitment to excellence, their desire to innovate, and their willingness to seek out expertise to advance patient care in their 911/emergency and interfacility ambulance operations.”
“My experiences with team building and integration of medical direction for first-responder agencies will be the most important skill I will bring to the table,” said Gemar. “When people and agencies need to contract for ambulance service, they generally have a choice. I want to provide the experience and expertise that further enhances the status of Southwest as the ambulance service of choice throughout Arizona.”
Fast Facts
- Dr. Gemar has 23 years of experience in the practice of hospital-based emergency medicine at Banner Thunderbird Medical Center Emergency Department, one of the busiest and most diverse in the State. He served as the Pre-hospital Medical Director there for the last 20 years.
- His lengthy experience with the
Arizona Emergency Medical Systems (AEMS) organization and several State EMS committees led to a term as Medical Director of the Arizona Department of Health Services/Bureau of EMS from 1998-2003. - Since leaving the Department of Health Services/Bureau of EMS, Dr. Gemar has maintained his emergency medicine practice and has taken special interest in AEMS issues, disaster preparedness, protocol unification, ambulance diversion issues, municipal fire department EMS, medical direction methods and mega-event EMS.
- According the National Football League, along with representatives from Southwest Ambulance, the
Glendale Fire Department and the National Football League, Dr. Gemar’s physician and nurse team provided visitors to the 2008 Super Bowl with one of the safest and most incident-free Super Bowls in memory.
SOURCE Southwest Ambulance