Rumors of unqualified McDavitt firefighters responding to calls unfounded

Krizaj: “Emergency responder, or first responder, is the lowest level of training … First responders can go on medical-dispatched calls, but they can’t do many things … They’re not actually able to do any type of medical care other than what a normal citizen could do. So maybe they have CPR certification or something like that, which [they would be allowed to perform] under the Good Samaritan Act. But they’d be going as more of a fire resource.”

I will have to say that this is not accurate. Yes, EMRs are the lowest level of training but they do require 16 hours of continuing education training every 2 years including CPR refresher. EMRs can do a lot of things on scene and a volunteer firefighter has to hold this certification to be allowed to respond to medical calls and they they are not covered under the Good Samaritan Act. The departments have to have guidelines for medical procedures and must have a medical director if they are going to do advanced procedures like advanced airways or carry Narcan. To say “that an EMR can only do about what the normal citizen can do” is an outright blast to volunteer firefighters and the Duluth fire chief should be ashamed of himself. You can verify EMR credentials on the EMSRB website.

Nicholas Kallio has been expired on the EMSRB since 2020 as an EMT. I am not sure if he has a paramedic license but he sure isn’t certified as an EMT.