(Photos by Lauren DeMasters)
A young Boy Scout is helping make the job of emergency responders easier with some magnetic files and community service. 15 year-old Cameron Duic is leading the way to get Mineola residents to put their vital medical information in a “File of Life” in prominent places in their home, so that if an emergency ever occurs, responders will have easy access to the patient’s medical needs.
The project was born out of some neighborly help. Mineola Trustee Paul Cusato was helping a friend move in to a new house in North Carolina when a neighbor came to the door holding a File of Life. Cusato, a former volunteer firefighter, immediately realized that Mineola residents were missing out on a potentially life-saving idea.
“People are often shaken up when emergency responders arrive, they might not be thinking right and with a major calamity even more so, so it’s helpful for responders to be able to see all that important information,” Cusato said.
Cusato took the idea to Mineola Mayor Scott Strauss, and they got local Boy Scout Troop 45 involved. Duic has taken the lead on the project and he, his troop and the local junior firefighters and volunteer firefighters have been helping out to pass them. They’re hoping to get one to every house and apartment in Mineola, and they’ll have some in reserve for when new residents move in.
“On a personal level, with my grandparents, I don’t even know all the medications they’re on,” Strauss said. “With this, it’s written down and ready to go. There are no mistakes.”
Winthrop-University Hospital understands the medical significance of the project, and has supported the idea by funding the order for all of the File of Life packets.
“Medical emergencies can happen at a moment’s notice and now, residents will have a tool to keep all of their vital medical and emergency contact information in one place and save emergency workers precious seconds when they’re needed most,” said John F. Collins, Winthrop’s president and CEO.
The packets came in unassembled and mailing them to each resident would’ve been costly, so Duic, the firefighters and Troop 45 have been assembling and hand-delivering the files to each residence in Mineola themselves. With 3,000 folders left, they will spend one more day handing them out, but the time devoted to the project is clearly worth it to Duic.
“It feels good to get everybody involved and helping. I hope it can be helpful for people,” he said.
