Ames paramedics can now do more for local patients in the back of the ambulance in the critical minutes before they reach the emergency room.

All 27 paramedics at Mary Greeley Medical Center, 111 Duff Ave., have achieved the highest level of advanced certification in pre-hospital care offered by the state of Iowa.

“This speaks highly of our commitment to providing the best in pre-hospital care,” said Marilyn Polito, director of emergency medical services.

Polito said the paramedic service at Mary Greeley Medical Center has always been on the cutting edge.

“This is just one more example,” Polito said.

Paramedic Supervisor Rich Lee said the certification gives Ames paramedics three new tools.

“We are now able to do RSI intubations using paralytics,” he said. “What that means is that we can help people who are having difficulty breathing. This allows us to completely manage their airway by placing a tube in their trachea.”

Lee said paramedics can also perform multi-level cardiac monitoring with new equipment, where they can view 12 areas of the heart instead of one.

“What it tells us is if a person is having a heart attack and what part of the heart is involved,” he said.

The third innovation allows paramedics to administer medication intravenously to remove clots.

“For example, we can bust a calcium clot that may be blocking people’s arteries,” Lee said.

Lee has been with the Mary Greeley Paramedics since it became the first hospital-based paramedic service in Iowa in 1979.

Lee said he thinks the new certification will improve the hospital’s ability to provide care to local residents.

“It gives us more options to make a difference for people before they reach the hospital,” he said. “Those are the times for critical treatments and [the] sooner you get started the better the patient’s outcome.”