REMS earns national service award

Any Rice community member who has been helped by Rice Emergency Medical Services (REMS) can attest to the value of the student-run volunteer organization. Thanks to the EMS World magazine and the National Association of Emergency Medical Technicians (NAEMT), REMS is now receiving recognition on a much larger scale.

REMS will be honored with the Impact Volunteer EMS Service of the Year when NAEMT holds its annual conference Nov. 9-13 in Nashville. (Photo by Jeff Fitlow)

REMS will be honored with the Impact Volunteer EMS Service of the Year when NAEMT holds its annual conference Nov. 9-13 in Nashville. The award recognizes outstanding performance by a volunteer EMS service and this is the first time a colligate EMS organization has won the award, said REMS director Lisa Basgall.

“For the students, this is a tough job to be on duty and treat their peers and professors, all the while studying and going to class too,” Basgall said.

Being the first collegiate organization to win the award adds to the honor, REMS Captain Mollie Ahn said.

“I believe that this just highlights how much REMS has grown over the years and can serve as a recognition to all the dedicated individuals who’ve given their all to build it to where it is now,” Ahn said. “I hope to continue this legacy and lead REMS into an even more accomplished future.”

For Ahn, being apart of the REMS is the only way for her to gain experience with hands-on patient care at the undergraduate level.

“No other opportunity I have been presented with gave me a professional experience to be medically in charge of a patient, and as an undergraduate student, have someone put complete trust and faith in me to medically care for them,” Ahn said. “REMS is special in that we have a long line of individuals who’ve graduated from the program to come back and foster the next line of EMTs.”

An advanced life-support first-responder organization, REMS has served the university since 1996. The volunteer staff includes 53 undergraduates, 20 alumni and seven physicians. During the 2013-14 academic year, REMS responded to 590 campus emergencies and offered CPR certification to nearly 500 people.

For more information on REMS, visit rems.rice.edu.