NY Yankees' Robinson Cano Teams Up With New Jersey's Fuchs EMS to Provide Ambulances, Training and Supplies to Dominican Republic

FAIR LAWN, N.J., March 6, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- All-Star second baseman Robinson Cano of the NY Yankees and Fuchs EMS and Medical Transportation Services of Fair Lawn, NJ, are collaborating on an ongoing goodwill initiative that is helping to standardize professional emergency medical care throughout the Dominican Republic.  Working with Cano and his RC24 Foundation, Fuchs is donating ambulances, medical supplies and emergency medical training to the small Caribbean nation that severely lacks such resources.

Fuchs CEO Kevin Fuchs and Cano traveled to the Dominican in late January to execute the first phase of the initiative.  With support from Northern New Jersey Mobile Intensive Care Communications, Fuchs and his team worked with Cano and RC24 to:

• secure, donate and deliver seven modern ambulances to the City of San Pedro de Macoris, completely refurbished, outfitted and equipped to World Health Organization standards;
• donate and deliver 776 pounds of medical supplies to help keep the ambulances operational; and,
• create and deliver an intensive week-long certification EMS training "boot camp" for local responders, facilitated by Fuchs and conducted by a team of EMS professionals he assembled from NJ-based service providers, including Michael Migliaccio, Chief, Ramsey Volunteer Ambulance Corp.; Scott Peterson, Lieutenant, Ramsey Volunteer Ambulance Corp.; and Arman Fardanesh, Deputy Chief, EMS for Newark Delaware Aetna Hose, Hook & Ladder Company.

On January 20, Fuchs, a native of Saddle River and a resident of Ramsey, and his team trained 35 people from the Dominican Red Cross, the Civil Defense and the San Pedro de Macoris Fire Department.  The trainees are now certified according to American Heart Association guidelines for CPR, Basic First Aid, Blood Borne Pathogens, and Ambulance Driver Training. Local officials have been given the keys to their new ambulances and are now actively serving the community of San Pedro de Macoris.  Moving forward, the trainees plan to become professional Emergency Medical Technicians and resident instructors within the Dominican Republic.

"This was historic from the standpoint of the Dominican Republic," said Robinson Cano. "With the help of FUCHS EMS and their partners, we are able to help the people of the Dominican Republic by responding to their dedication and enthusiasm to improve the human condition. On that basis, I'm convinced of the success that we will realize with this initiative, beyond our success in San Pedro de Macoris. This is an important achievement for the Dominican people that will have a lasting impact on communities throughout their nation, with the help of their friends from a caring community of professionals in New Jersey."

No formal system for first response emergency medical assistance

According to Fuchs, historically, the Dominican Republic has had no formal system for first response emergency medical assistance, no formal training for those coming to the aid of the community and no requirements regarding the equipment that is available or used.  A native son of San Pedro de Macoris, Cano and his parents founded the RC24 Foundation to help with such challenges.

San Pedro de Macoris Mayor Architec Ramon Antonio Echavarria said, "This is not an effort to merely adopt an American system in the Dominican Republic, but to help establish a foundation for a system that works best in this environment and can ultimately evolve to benefit communities throughout the Dominican Republic."

Lives already being saved; next visit planned

"Since returning to New Jersey, I've spoken to some of the students we trained in the DR who say the training was invaluable, that many lives have been saved as a direct result of our training and that patient care has improved 10-fold," said Fuchs.  "The trucks are up and running and helping to save lives in San Pedro de Macoris on a daily basis.  It's extraordinarily gratifying, and we're putting plans in place for our return visit. This initiative is about helping the people of the Dominican Republic build a system for professional emergency medical services, and we're well on our way."

Fuchs indicates that his team and the RC24 camp will return to the Dominican Republic to conduct more training and provide additional medical supplies in the fall.  Additionally, Fuchs and his instructors are planning to organize some summer fundraising events and programs for Cano's foundation. 

RC24 is a non-profit charitable foundation formed in 2011 by Robinson Cano and his parents, Claribel Mercedes and Joselito Cano. Its mission is to touch the lives of underprivileged children in the Dominican Republic and around the world to improve their opportunities and better their future.

Fuchs EMS and Medical Transportation Services, based in Fair Lawn, NJ, is a private LLC corporation.  Its CEO Kevin Fuchs is a healthcare provider with more than 20 years of EMS-related experience as both an Emergency Medical Technician and former Paramedic. Fuchs EMS is fully licensed and insured by the State Department of Health and Senior Services of NJ to provide Non-Emergency and Emergency Basic Life Support care and transportation as well as Wheelchair Van transportation and services. The company provides service to clients and patients throughout Bergen and Passaic counties on a 24- hour- a-day, seven-days-a-week basis, including to Ramapo College of New Jersey in Mahwah.  Fuchs has been active in numerous charitable initiatives related to 9/11, Hurricane Floyd, Tomorrow's Children Fund and others.  In 2010, Fuchs EMS donated an ambulance to the town of Licey al Medio in the Dominican Republic.  http://www.fuchsems.com

SOURCE Fuchs EMS and Medical Transportation Services