Key Largo EMS

Last week, ten members of Key Largo EMS attended the First There First Care Conference in Hollywood, Florida. Lead paramedics and volunteers participated in hands-on training, cutting-edge classes, and expert-led lectures. Key Largo EMS remains committed to continuing education and clinical excellence—ensuring we’re always ready to serve our community with skill, compassion, and professionalism.

Pictured here: one volunteer, two lead paramedics, and a lead paramedic trainee attend a lecture on end-tidal carbon dioxide monitoring.

STAFF SPOTLIGHT

For EMS Week, we're profiling different staff members to give you an opportunity to get to know our employees and volunteers!

Meet Chris McCoy, one of our Lead Paramedics.

How long have you been with Key Largo EMS?
"Full-time since January, but I started as a volunteer in November 2023."

What made you get into EMS?
"As I approached the end of my law enforcement career, I realized I wanted to continue to serve the community. I realized I always had an interest in EMS that dated back to my childhood while watching the TV show, Emergency."

What advice would you give to someone who just started in EMS?
"Learn as much as you can, while you can. No two situations are the same, therefore you must have knowledge, skills and abilities in your 'toolbox.'"

What is your favorite part of your job?
"As silly as it sounds, actually helping people."

What or who are some of your biggest inspirations in the organizations?
"Despite being a smaller EMS organization, I am impressed by the dedication and professionalism of the staff."

What kind of EMS calls do you feel you specialize in?
"Complex, muti-discipline incidents."
What do you mean by that?
"Events involving multiple types of responders. IE: EMS, Fire, Law Enforcement and other government agencies."

Describe an experience that has had a lasting impact on you.
"Unfortunately, the Parkland Shooting of 2018."
Did you respond to that?
"Yes. That event drives my professional passion for critical incident response and training."

What’s a cause that you are passionate about?
"Let's put two things! One: shelter animals - every shelter animal needs a home. And two: Professionally, it's critical incident response. "

What brought you to Key Largo?
"Seeing the ambulance out on Overseas Highway. It got me to thinking, maybe I can volunteer there when I get home? So, I started inquiring about volunteering for Key Largo EMS back in July, while I working as a paramedic in Yellowstone National Park."

How would one of your work partners describe you in three words?
"The old guy."

Tell me something about you most people don't know.
"I love collecting and erecting Lego toy sets. So much so, I dragged my wife to the home of Legos in Denmark."

Do you have any pets? If so, what kind(s) and what are their names?
"I have three dogs, three rescue dogs: Brinny, Molly and Teddy. "

What kind of dog would you be?
"Your very generic shelter mutt, probably closer to a silly pit bull."

What is your favorite local restaurant?
"High Tide. They have a great breakfast menu!"

What's your late-night gas station go-to snack?
"Reese's' Peanut Butter Cups - THE BIG CUPS - because WHY would you get the small ones when you can get the BIG ONES!? It makes no sense to me."

What, if anything, are you currently binge-watching? Or reading?
"'I am reading Lies My Teacher Told Me' and binge-watching 'Mad Men,' again."

What's a song you know all the words to?
"'Jingle Bell Rock.'"

What is your go-to song to sing to a pediatric patient to sooth them or get them to calm down?
"'The wheels on the bus go round and round.'"

STAFF SPOTLIGHT

For EMS Week, we're profiling different staff members to allow you to get to know our employees and volunteers!

Meet Sarah Straub, Training Officer & Lead Paramedic.

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How long have you been with Key Largo EMS?
"October 2024 will be my 3-year anniversary."

Can you tell us a bit about yourself and your background?
"I was a waterfront lifeguard for 10 years, 5 of which I was an EMT. Eventually, I promoted up and decided management wasn't for me. I missed the opportunity to help people one-on-one. So, I went to paramedic school 7 years ago and I guess the rest is history."

What’s a favorite quote or phrase of yours?
“George Bernard Shaw – ‘I am of the opinion that my life belongs to the whole community, and as long as I live it is my privilege to do for it what I can. I want to be thoroughly used up when I die, for the harder I work the more I live. I rejoice in life for its own sake. Life is no ‘brief candle’ for me. It is a sort of splendid torch which I have got hold of for the moment, and I want to make it burn as brightly as possible before handing it on to future generations.’”

Who has been a mentor or role model for you in the organization, and how have they influenced you?
"Ooooo! Kay Cullen. She's an amazing teacher. So patient and direct at the same time, she taught EMT classes for many, many years at Key Largo EMS with the college. I was so lucky to have the opportunity to teach with her and have her as a mentor."

What is your favorite part of your job?
"I love the comradery of working in EMS. We literally spend a third of our life at work and the people you work with become like family. You can learn SOMETHING from everyone that you work with."

What kind of EMS calls do you feel you specialize in?
"I love a complex medical call. Those calls make me go back and research and learn more about the pathologies. But I feel like I specialize in my ability to talk to people."

What is a cause that you’re passionate about?
“Education and learning. Learning is a form of growth and just like our cellular pathology when we stop growing, we technically begin the decay/dying process. So, the best way to live is to grow and the best way to grow is to learn. Never stop learning – no matter what the topic is. Just find something that interests you and chase that.”

What are some of your favorite local restaurants?
"KRUST is amazing. Local 'Mom & Pop' and made from scratch."

What is one thing you can’t live without while at work?
My pink stethoscope. It's an MDF and I hear so much better out of it."

What’s something surprising that not many people know about you? OR Tell me something about you most people don't know.
"Pink is NOT my favorite color."

What brought you to Key Largo?
"A partner of mine out in Texas encouraged me to try and move home to be closer to my family. I'm a conch from the keys. So, this was coming back home for me."

Describe an experience that has had a lasting impact on you?
"That same partner suddenly and unexpectedly passed away last summer. It was something I never expected to happen. It made me realize that a good work partner really is a part of your family. I was and still am close to his family. He's one of the reasons I will always carry pink trauma sheers. We both always carried pink trauma sheers, working together. It lead to some funny and awkward moments."

What's your late-night gas station go-to snack?
"Tom Thumb ICEE, a mix cola and cherry!"

What kind of dog would you be?
“A poodle. Smarter than you expect, strong bite and a working, water dog at heart.”

What is your go-to song to sing to a pediatric patient to sooth them or get them to calm down?
“‘Three Little Birds’ by Bob Marley and the Wailers.”

What's a song you know all the words to?
“‘Careless Whisper’”

STAFF SPOTLIGHT

For EMS Week, we're profiling different staff members to give you an opportunity to get to know our employees and volunteers!

Meet Ariel Betancourt, a former volunteer EMT and current Lead Paramedic Trainee

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How long have you been with Key Largo EMS?
“I have been at Key Largo for a year and a couple of months as a volunteer and I just started as a Lead Paramedic trainee about a month ago.”

When did you first know that you wanted to pursue a career in this field?
“I first knew in High School. I realized I didn’t want to do work that involved sitting in an office all day. So, I researched EMS and Fire. And I realized that it was some of the most impactful work that you could do. The job takes a lot of courage and I thought it would be a job that suited me well.”

What advice would you give to someone who just started in EMS?
“I would say the best advice I could give is that we should never stop learning. No matter how good you think you are, there is always room for improvement. People’s lives are in our hands and we owe it to them to keep on learning.”

Who has been a mentor or role model for you in the organization, and how have they influenced you?
“I would say the biggest mentor has been Oscar Pinzon. He has taught me a lot, not just about EMS but how to handle myself on calls. He has helped to keep a level head in stressful situations. Not just in EMS, but also in life.”

What was your favorite aspect of volunteering?
“The sense of helping the community while volunteering is even stronger. I was genuinely there just to help, not just the community but our crews. I was able to help with everything while getting experience and that was my favorite aspect.”

What brought you to Key Largo?
“Another Paramedic Trainee, Fernando, told me about how he was volunteering. He told me about the daily training and how helpful it was for him and gaining experience. And now we were both hired at the same time as Lead Paramedic Trainees.”

Describe an experience that has had a lasting impact on you.
“We had a stroke alert this one time. And we came back to the hospital a couple of hours later and saw that she was doing drastically better. It shows that we really do make a difference in patient care and that our training does pay off.”

What do you think is the most important skill that you bring to the table?
“I would say, I work well under pressure. Whenever a stressful situation comes on, I’m good at remaining calm.”

What is your favorite part of your job?
“I would say the comradery as crew. The fact that we live together 48 hours a week. It’s one of my favorite parts. We get to go out and help the community together and that’s definitely my favorite.”

What are some of your favorite local restaurants?
“Either Mike’s BBQ or Buffalo’s Steak House.”

What’s a cause that you are passionate about?
“Advocating for those who are less fortunate.”

How would one of your work partners describe you in three words?
“Energetic, Dedicated and Humble.”

What is one thing you can’t live without when you’re on shift?
“COFFEE!”

What is your favorite drink at work?
“Ariel’s Cafecito Service”

What, if anything, are you currently binge-watching? Or reading?
“Binge watching – I am re-watching The Walking Dead, right now.”

What's your late-night gas station go-to snack?
“You go to the gas station, right? – you’re thirsty and you need a drink, right? So, you get your zero-calorie blue raspberry Gatorade – THEN you need your beef jerky for your protein, right? – but then you need that sweet treat, so you get your peanut M&Ms and THAT – that makes the perfect combo.”

What kind of dog would you be?
“Would you agree that I would be a golden retriever type of dog? It works. I think if people see a picture of me, that they will clearly see that I’m a golden retriever type of guy.”

With which cartoon character would you most wish to swap lives?
“Sponge Bob - live it the sea, do what I want to.”
Doesn’t he work for free?
“Yeah, but he lives in a pineapple under the sea!”

What is your go-to song to sing to a pediatric patient to soothe them or get them to calm down?
“Oh, it has to be Baby Shark – for some reason they love it.”