Rockland’s EMS workers are the cream of the crop
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- July
- 21
Five emergency services workers from Rockland have been recognized as the tops in the Hudson Valley Region (Sullivan, Ulster, Dutchess, Putnam, Orange and Rockland counties).
• Cheryl Manasier, an RN at Nyack Hospital — Nurse of the Year
• Brandon Smith of the Rockland EMS Training Academy and a volunteer with the Spring Hill Ambulance Corps — EMS Educator of the Year
• Dr. Oscar Marcilla, based at Nyack Hospital — Physician of the Year
• John McCullough of the Rockland Paramedic Service and a volunteer with the Sparkill Fire Department — ALS (Advanced Life Support) Provider of the Year
• Rockland Paramedic Service — EMS Agency of the Year
There were eight categories, and Rockland snagged honors in five of them. They move on to the next level and in September, the state EMS Council will name its statewide honorees.
The other categories were EMS Communications Specialist of the Year (Rockland’s was Jenny Kugler, a dispatcher with the Stony Point Police Department), Basic Life Support Provider of the Year (Rockland’s was Anthony Masi, a volunteer with the Haverstraw Ambulance Corps) and Youth Member of the Year (Rockland’s was Ephraim Tauber, with Spring Hill).
Here are the bios on Rockland’s regional winners, provided by the County Executive’s office:
Registered Professional Nurse of Excellence
Cheryl Manasier RN
Nyack HospitalCriteria: Contributions to the EMS community as a NYS registered professional Nurse. Dedication, responsibility, professional behavior, ingenuity, special skill or insight in the prehospital environment.
Eligibility: New York State licensed registered professional nurse serving within the EMS System.Cheryl has more than 25 years of service looking out for our EMS providers. She has shown an enormous amount of strength and determination. While she has had some personal challenges there was never a doubt she would return to the ER. Cheryl always greets us with a warm welcome and takes an interest in the crew and patient we deliver to the ER. She treats everyone with respect and goes out of her way to educate the crews.
EMS Educator of Excellence
Brandon Smith
Spring Hill Ambulance/Rockland County EMS Training Academy/EMS-9Criteria: Individual who through outstanding teaching, educational administration/coordination, publication or research has maximally improved prehospital services at the local, county, regional or state level.
Eligibility: EMS Educator or equivalentBrandon wears many hats in his service to the community. He joined Spring Hill VAC in 1993. Brandon also maintains active status with the Hillcrest FD, DMAT NY-4 and is an instructor at the R.C. EMS Academy. He was appointed R.C. Deputy EMS Coordinator EMS-9 in 2007. In 2006 he completed his NYS DOH EMT Certified Instructor Certification. He is not one to say no and can usually be found providing CME lectures or teaching his classes. While it might seem to be a busy load he is always willing to help someone with a desire to learn. He has the patience and ability to teach the most challenging student. People like this don’t come along often and we are fortunate to have Brandon there with a smile willing to share his experience and knowledge.
Physician of Excellence
Dr. Oscar Marcilla MD
Nyack HospitalCriteria: Contributions to the EMS community as a physician. Dedication, responsibility, professional behavior, ingenuity, special skill or insight in the prehospital environment.
Eligibility: NYS licensed physician serving an EMS system.Dr. Marcilla is the Medical Director of Nyack ER. He makes it a point to attend as many meeting and events with the EMS providers as time permits. If he is not available he arranges to have a representative present. Dr Marcilla listens with an open ear and addresses all concerns. We are fortunate to have him in our community as a resource and a friend.
John McCullough
Rockland Paramedic ServiceCriteria: Contribution by an individual to the community as an Emergency Medical Technician-Intermediate (EMT-I), EMT-Critical Care Technician (EMT-CC), or Paramedic (EMT-P). Dedication, responsibility, professional behavior, ingenuity, special skill or insight in the EMS environment.
Eligibility: NYS Certified EMT-I, EMT-CC, EMT-P.On May 14th 2007 at approx. 5:30 p.m., John was detailed to Medic 21. A call was received for a motorcycle accident with 2 victims. Medic 21 as well as Nanuet & Pearl River VAC responded to the scene. One victim unfortunately succumbed  to his injuries while the other was left with critical injuries including an arterial bleed to the leg. All attempts to stop the bleeding failed until John made the decision to use quik clot. John is dedicated to serving his community. John’s career includes NYPD, Sparkill Fire Dept, South Orangetown VAC and Rockland Paramedic Services.
EMS Agency of the Year
Rockland Paramedic ServiceCriteria: Any agency, which strives for consistency in EMS excellence and exhibits exemplary performance when providing prehospital emergency medical care.
Eligibility: A NYS certified volunteer or career EMS agency, i.e., NYS certified ambulance service or fire department.RPS has made it a point to advance patient care in their service area. They do not take the easy road and are constantly reviewing new ideas, concepts and products in the EMS field. They work together with the Volunteer agencies to provide Rockland County residents with the best EMS system possible. They participate in all local, regional and state EMS meetings to keep current on changing trends. They have also participated in several pilot programs through the Hudson Valley Regional EMS council. These programs were not mandatory and required many hours of documentation. Where there is a need RPS will find a way to assist. They are a valuable asset in our EMS community.
This entry was posted
on Monday, July 21st, 2008 at 6:21 pm by Amy Vernon. 
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