LEHIGHTON, Pa. – Being a paramedic is something Doug Deutsch with Lehighton Ambulance Association said he never envisioned himself doing for 47 years and counting.
It all started when he took an advanced first aid course.
“It kind of snowballed from there,” said Deutsch.
His father was involved in first aid, which Deutsch said got the bug set in him.
“Took a first aid course, went on to become an emergency medical technician,” said Deutsch.
He said a show called “Emergency” brought to light what work could be done out on the street and got things moving in Pennsylvania to create paramedics.
Doug Deutsch with Lehighton Ambulance Association
Deutsch was part of the first class.
“The class started in ’76, August of ’76. They didn’t really give us an end date when the class started because they said we really won’t know what we want you people to do,” said Deutsch.
There was no textbook.
“Our textbook per se was a manuscript that came out of Washington D.C. every week, 26 copies. They would Xerox it and hand it out to us every Friday,” said Deutsch.
He said people in the class trained to do some things that never made it into the final chapter, things he said resurfaced 10, 20 years later.
Deutsch was one of the first flight paramedics when Medevac started.
He has also worked with other organizations, including Cetronia.
“You walk away with a certain satisfaction of knowing you’ve done somebody some really good,” said Deutsch.
And he has a goal.
“My goal is to make 50 years. I’ve always wanted to make that 50-year mark, so it’s within sight, so we’re going to try to make that 50 year and who knows, maybe a little bit further,” said Deutsch.
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Publish date : 2024-08-14 11:15:00
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