On January 16, 2006, Mark Sanders of Bayside Community Hospital resigned his position as At Large Hospital Representative on the RAC-R Board of Directors.

Mark has been a definite asset to the RAC and to the Board and his presence will be missed.

Mark has accepted a new position with a hospital in Delaware and will be moving there near the end of January. We wish Mark and his family all the best.

The Board will announce a replacement for the unexpired At Large Position soon. RAC Chair Lucille Maes has asked any Trauma Designated Hospital Representative who is interested in the position to put in a resume to the Executtive Director. The resume may be faxed to 281 346-2722.

Alyce Rexses Resigns RAC-R Board of Director Position

On August 18th Alyce Rexses informed the RAC Executive Director and the Board that she was resigning her TNC postion at Angleton-Danbury Hospital and would thus be submitting her resignation as a member of the RAC-R Board of Directors.

The Board wished Alyce well in her future endeavors and thanked her for her service to the RAC.

The Board will announce a replacement for the unexpired Level II Board Position at the October 11, 2005 General Assembly Meeting.

Suzy Goad Resigns RAC-R Board of Directors Position

On March 7th Suzy Goad informed the RAC Executive Director that she was resigning as Trauma Coordinator here at Cleveland Regional Medical Center. Her last day will be March 29, 2005.

"Thank you so much for the opportunity to meet all of you and work with you, however minimal it may have been it truly was a pleasure," said Goad.

The Board of Directors will appoint a person to fill the unexpired term as per RAC Bylaws.

Thelma Lemley, RN was appointed to the RAC-R Board of Directors on February 17th to fill the unexpired EMS term of John Accomado who resigned on December 2nd.

Ms. Lemley is a retiree of the City of Houston Health Department where she worked in several capacities including Acting Director of the EMS Division. Most recently, Ms. Lemeley has served as Vice Chair for Trauma RAC-Q (Houston).

Ms. Lemley represents Manvel EMS in the RAC-R General Assembly. Her extensive knowledge of and interest in EMS and Trauma affairs at the local, regional and state levels will be a great asset to the RAC-R Board.

On December 2nd, John Accomando submitted his resignation to RAC Chair, Lucille Maes. "It is with great regret that I submit my resignation from the RAC R Board of Directors..." said Accomando as he cited his new duties at Montgomery County EMS in requiring the decision.

Accomando has been an invaluable resource to the RAC and has been instrumental in the transformation that has taken place in RAC affairs over the last year. His leadership and his participation will be greatly missed.

The Board of Directors will fill Mr. Accomando's unexpired Board of Directors position at it's January meeting.

On November 9th, 2004, Genie West, R.N., submitted a letter of resignation to RAC Executive Director, Wayne Morris. In her letter, Ms. West stated that it was with regret that she must resign her Education Committee post due to her having accepted a new full-time case management postion at Christus St. Elizabeth Hospital.

Ms. West wrote, "I have really enjoyed participating in the activities of RAC-R and am pleased to see the positive direction of growth."

While we certainly miss Genie on the RAC, we wish her the best in her new positon.

On August 31, 2004 Virginia Dunn informed RAC Executive Director, Wayne Morris, that she was resigning her position at Cleveland Regional Medical Center. Ms. Dunn will be taking a position with a Houston area hospital. As a result, she announced she was resigning her position on the RAC-R Board of Directors. The Board will take official action on Ms. Dunn's resignation at its October meeting.

Ms. Suzy Goad will be taking the position Ms. Dunn held at Cleveland Regional Medical Center and will be the facilities new representative to the RAC.

"It was pleasure working with ... the people in RAC-R," said Ms. Dunn. She wished the RAC all the best in the coming year.

Dr. Mileski Resigns as Chair of RAC-R

On July 2, 2004, Dr. William Mileski submitted his resignation to the RAC Board of Directors. Dr. Mileski's resignation was announced to the General Assembly at it regulary scheduled meeting on July 13, 2004.

At a meeting of the Board of Directors held on July 7, 2004, Lucille Maes was chosen to be the new chair. Ms. Maes' recommendation for the postion was presented to the membership at the July 13th meeting and the recommendation was unaniomously supported by the membership.

The Board of Directors adopted a resolution of thanks to Dr. Mileski for his years of service to the RAC.

CLIA Waivers Will No Longer be Held by TDH (4/22/04)

The Texas Department of Health's Bureau of Emergency Management has held a CLIA Laboratory Certificate of Waiver for all ambulances in Texas for several years. However, we have been advised not to renew the current certificate that will expire on August 31, 2004, because of legal implications for the department. Effective September 1, 2004, EMS Providers will be responsible for securing and maintaining a current CLIA Certificate of Waiver. This applies to any firm using glucometers or other devices to test blood or other patient fluids. Firms that do not use glucometers or other devices to test blood or other patient fluids are not subject to CLIA requirements.

This letter was mailed in the last few days to all currently licensed EMS Providers. Additionally, there is information in the May/June issue of the Texas EMS Magazine which you should have received/be receiving at any time.
All affected services should take action immediately to obtain individual CLIA waivers.

On-Line EMS exam scheduling now available

Want to schedule an exam? Do it online! You can now go to the Bureau of Emergency Management's website (www.tdh.state.tx.us/hcqs/ems) and find information on all EMS exam sites in one place. And best of all, the website is usually always available -- day or night. Once you send in your request, you will receive an email confirming your exam site in three business days.

In years past, regions used various methods for scheduling exams, including email, voicemail and web-based scheduling. When the Bureau (BEM) reorganized from regions into zones, we realized the need to standardize and more efficiently schedule candidates for exams. All of these systems were evaluated and a web-based process developed. There is now one place on the web for dates and locations, and a simple process you can use to schedule by web-based email. The exam scheduling information can be found on BEM's main web page.

To summarize the process, all initial ECA, EMT and Instructor candidates, along with recertification/re-licensure candidates, can schedule using the website. The process is relatively simple. Go to our Schedule An Exam web page to review instructions about exams and scheduling. You will be prompted to verify your eligibility using our online certification search feature. If eligible, you can then choose two exam sites. Click on the month that you would like to take the exam and make note of two choices including date, exam number and city. Then click on EMS Exam Request Form to fill out a web-based form that delivers email to an account that a scheduling team monitors. The scheduling team is composed of support staff at BEM's central and field offices. This scheduling team will pick up these emails several times throughout the day. Within three business days, a team member will send an email confirmation telling you for which exam site you are scheduled. You may only schedule one exam site. If you have problems or questions, forward your confirmation with questions or comments back to EMSExam@tdh.state.tx.us.

The exam web site gives an additional link to some driving directions and site-specific information you will need about the exam location. BEM's goals with web and email based exam scheduling are to improve customer service, decrease the wait time in finding an exam, and eliminate telephone calls to filed offices for scheduling. Field offices will schedule by telephone those that do not have access to the web. The central office (Austin ) does not schedule exams.

Kathy
Kathryn C. Perkins, RN, MBA, Chief
Bureau of Emergency Management
phone: 512/834-6740
fax: 512/834-6736
email: kathy.perkins@tdh.state.tx.us

This site is maintained for the East Texas Gulf Coast Trauma Service Area (RAC-R) by The Weston Group. You are encouraged to report any errors or problems you encounter while using the site. Please offer any suggestions you may have that will cause this site to better serve your needs. You may contact The Weston Group as indicated below: