CALDWELL, Idaho — Canyon County Paramedics are receiving praise for their work in keeping Nampa's first responders safe.
The paramedics partnered with Nampa Police and Fire departments for their Tactical Blood Program. The program provides blood for critical care to police responding to critical incidents.
Paramedics have been working with Nampa's Tactical Response Team for years now, but this year they deployed the Tactical Blood Program.
One of its creators, Jade Parsons, who is a training captain for Treasure Valley EMS, says it came from a desire for paramedics like himself to create new ways to assist the police when they find themselves in harm's way.
“(Police are) always striving to be the best, and if they’re going to be out there putting their life on the line, they deserve the best," Parsons said. "So that was our whole goal, to be the best medical providers in that tactical environment that we could be for them."
Prior to carrying whole blood, the teams would use saline solutions, which isn't as effective. Now, each time the team goes out, they have blood that has been tested and is safe to administer in the event of a first responder's life being in danger.
Roy Miller, the Division Chief of Operations for Canyon County Paramedics says this could prove to be invaluable.
“There are missions that could be in the middle of the winter, it could take us two, two and a half hours to get to the hospital," Miller said. "If it’s snowing, Life Flight is not an option. So we need to do everything we need to do to increase their chance of survivability.”
The plan is for the program to be expanded, not just throughout the Treasure Valley, but throughout all of Idaho by Summer 2024.
