SPOKANE, Wash. — For the tens of thousands of people either watching or taking part in Sunday’s Bloomsday festivities, some of the most important volunteers were easily lost in the crowds.
Amidst the tradition, the fun, the quirkiness–and the sometimes chaos–of Bloomsday, it’s easy to forget that at the end of the day, it is a race, which is why it’s extra important to have professionals on standby.
“We like to say that people often forget about medical until they need it,” said Dr. Irene Zoesch.
Zoesch is a volunteer with the Spokane County Medical Reserve Corps, a program of the Spokane Regional Health District (SRHD).
“It’s an all-volunteer corps of clinicians, doctors, nurses, PAs and EMTs who provide medical response when needed to the county in emergency situations, or, at events like these, we get to participate and help out with the community,” Zoesch said.
What they do at Bloomsday is provide basic first aid, provide stabilization for someone in an emergency while waiting for paramedics to arrive, amongst other things.
“We give water out to people, if people just need a break and to lay down we have some opportunities for that,” Zoesch said.
Sunday’s rainy and chilly weather provided some different challenges than Bloomsdays past.
“Making sure that we’ve got runners that are appropriately warm–I know for myself I don’t want anyone to get hypothermia,” Zoesch said. “There’s that difference between, ‘I’m running and I’m really, really warm,’ and ‘I stop running and I’m really, really cold.'”
Plus, there were plenty of chances to cheer on Bloomies.
“One of my core values is service, so I really enjoy these opportunities to get out of the clinic, out of working in the hospital and getting to work in the community on a more healthy level, not seeing people when they’re sick,” Zoesch said.
The SRHD’s Medical Reserve Corps is always looking for medical professionals to volunteer. For information on how to apply, visit the SRHD’s website by clicking here.
