Cypress Creek EMS Honored

December 14, 2011

Commissioner Jack Cagle has declared Dec. 14 Cypress Creek EMS Day and Dr. Vartanian Day, during a reception hosted by Houston Northwest Medical Center.

Cagle adopted the resolutions after the Cypress Creek EMS received the 2011 Texas Private/ Public Provider Award and CCEMS Medical Director Levon Vartanian receiving the Texas EMS Medical Director of the Year award for the second time since 2009. The last time the organization won both awards was 1985.

"They've received this great honor because of all that they do in the community," said Houston Northwest Medical Center CEO Linda Mercier. "Not just in patient care, which is a big part of it, but also in community relations, training and emergency preparedness."

Others who attended the event include Bradley J. England, executive director of CCEMS and numerous others from the Houston Northwest Chamber of Commerce and Houston Northwest Medical Center.

With 159 paid employees and 143 workers working with a myriad of agencies, CCEMS covers 250 square miles and serves a population of 500,000 and receives 30,000 calls annually.

The agency boasts its own EMS training facility and Vartanian is credited with improving EMS care such as sending cardiac patients to the catheter labs instead of the ER and utilizing the Lucas Chest Compression System, which serves to improve cardiac arrest recovery and survival rates.

"I never would have imagined an award like this," said Vartanian. "For me, it's not just a job; it's a hobby."

Beginning his career as a paramedic and eventually becoming a doctor, Vartanian said he became interested in medicine after watching his favorite show Emergency! on an old black and white TV.

"Johnny and Roy were my idols," he said. "That made me want to go out into the streets and save lives and administer medicine...That was my inspiration"

"I love medicine; it's a passion for me," he continued. "After all when you do something you love passionately, it does come easily."

George Davis, medical director of emergency medicine, congratulated both award recipients during the event.

"I deal with Cypress Creek EMS on a daily basis... I know that the quality of care they provide is excellent," he said. "As doctors, we don't get to see what goes on in the field, and we rely on a lot of those paramedics to give us that story. Without those stories, we don't know how to provide care for them."