Providing Emergency Medical Services to Victims of Sudden Cardiac Arrest
Sudden cardiac arrest in the out-of-hospital setting often results in undesirable outcomes. Undaunted by the unfavorable odds, our skilled clinicians have successfully resuscitated thousands of victims of sudden cardiac arrest. In many cases, Return of Spontaneous Circulation (ROSC) is accompanied by complete recovery with no lasting neurological impairment. Remaining ever poised to provide care to the world at a moment’s notice is what enables GMR clinicians to produce such amazing results when every second counts. For years we searched in vain for the perfect way to celebrate the great clinical outcomes our caregivers have produced in sudden cardiac arrest cases.
Showcasing Cardiac Saves
In 2017, Dr. Brian Clemency and Dr. Johanna Innes, medical directors in our Buffalo, New York operation, ended our search with an idea. They invented the “ROSC” wall to showcase the positive
cardiac arrest outcomes produced by GMR caregivers. Doctors Clemency and Innes developed the idea that we would hang a plaque on the “ROSC” Wall for every patient who survived sudden cardiac arrest and experienced no lingering neurological deficits. Each plaque would bear the date of the cardiac event, the names of the GMR caregivers, and would also note any and all first responders who aided in resuscitation efforts. The only thing Doctors Clemency and Innes needed was a name for their wall.
Not letting the absence of a name for the wall stand in the way of celebrating the great work of our clinicians, Doctors Clemency and Innes, with help from Buffalo Fleet Manager Mark Braun, hung the first series of “ROSC” plaques.
The Tomorrow Wall®
is Born
For nearly two years the number of plaques on the wall grew steadily but the wall remained nameless and stark. By default, people simply called it the “ROSC” wall. In late 2018, Indiana Operations Manager Lee Turpen erected a “ROSC” wall in our Evansville office. A few days later, when speaking about the “ROSC” wall to a group of colleagues, Regional Director John Robben said, matter-of-factly with a humble shrug, “I just call it the
Tomorrow Wall,” a name that needs no explanation. In that moment, John named our wall and perfected that which Doctors Celemency and Innes had created.
In addition to celebrating the great work of our teammates and the tomorrows they have given so many cardiac arrest victims, our
Tomorrow Walls also serve as constant reminders of the importance of early, high-quality CPR, timely defibrillation, and Advanced Cardiac Life Support.
Tomorrow Wall Locations
As we celebrate lives saved, our
Tomorrow Wall tradition continues to grow in operations across the country. Today, we have
Tomorrow Walls in 14 cities including:
Northeast Region
Nashua, NH
Manchester, NH
Hartford, CT
Waterbury, CT
New Haven, CT
Bridgeport, CT
Springfield, MA
Buffalo, NY
Syracuse, NY
Escanaba, MI
Grand Rapids, MI
Dayton, OH
Evansville, IN
Southeast Region
Herndon, VA
South Region
Arlington, TX