Rescue seen by voluntary associations: a look at Garda Emergenza
Voluntary associations are emergency system vital element, and of the health system in general. We met Garda Emergenza, a voluntary association based in Lonato sul Garda
Garda Emergenza, when rescue is practised on the slopes and hills of Lake Garda
The world of emergency rescue does not replicate itself identically everywhere: it is shaped by the needs of the territory, which may be geographical and/or social.
Garda Emergenza is an association of volunteers born in 2005, the protagonist in the rescue of that corner of Lake Garda.
We asked for an interview with Mauro Martinelli, a volunteer, who kindly granted it.
The sixteen years of voluntary work of Garda Emergenza
First of all, would you like to tell us about Garda Emergenza? Introduce your association to our readers and explain to us what you are about
“Garda Emergenza OdV was founded in 2005, even though we were called Lonato Emergenza when we were born.
We were born in Lonato, and we still have our headquarters there today.
As far as the 118 services are concerned, the operational headquarters are in Moniga del Garda.
We were born thanks to six or seven willing people from the town who, driven by a desire to help, started. The parish priest gave us a room to set up the first centre.
We then managed to get our first ambulance and set up an organisation, and in the beginning, we only dealt with medical transport.
In the following years, as the number of volunteers and interest grew, we entered the world of 118.
2005-2021: how has Garda Emergenza changed over the last 15 years and, above all, how has the rescue service changed in your area?
“In the last 10 years, there has been certainly a fundamental change in Lombardy, especially as regards training.
We depend on the regional company AREU, which rightly demands more and more of us.
And there is a lot to be done to keep up and to guarantee efficient services.
It is why volunteers not only work shifts but also undergo continuous training.
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Can you tell us the main figures of your association?
“Of the 150 members, 70-80 of whom work on shifts. The majority are volunteers.
Within the group, we have volunteers who work as nurses.
We do not have any doctors in our organisation at the moment.
We currently have three employees who deal exclusively with emergency rescue.
For medical transports, we only use trained volunteers.
As far as our organisation is concerned, we have a board of directors with a president and eight councillors, each of whom has a task.
I, for example, am the treasurer and administrator, but there are also people in charge of transport, medical equipment and shifts.
We have a competent doctor who supports us by giving us compulsory examinations”.
Let’s talk about the vehicle fleet: how is Garda Emergenza equipped?
“Garda Emergenza currently has five ambulances, equipped for 118 rescues and also used for medical transport.
One of them has just been taken over. It is brand new.
The municipality will soon be entrusting us with a vehicle for transporting the disabled, as we have the qualifications to carry out this essential service.
Of the five ambulances, we have three Volkswagens and two Ducatos, the most representative vehicles in our sector in Italy.
What characterises a Volkswagen ambulance? What makes it preferable to other equally good vehicles? How is it best suited to your area?
“Both ambulances are great, but for five years we’ve been opting for the Volkswagen, mainly for one reason: we do a lot of work in the villages around Lake Garda, which have small streets.
So the small size of the vehicle makes it easier for us, and it gives us incredible advantages in terms of traffic flow.
Without taking anything away from Ducato, Volkswagen is a vehicle that from a mechanical point of view is very valid and effective: it’s a 4×4, so for us, who all have hills, having four-wheel drive makes all the difference.
We then found an outfitter who came up with solutions to compensate for the loss of space, which gave us a good compromise: we lose a bit of space but gain a lot of other things.
Fittings: what features? What features do you like most about your fitters?
“The most recent fittings we have done with EDM.
I got to know and visit the company’s premises. We like one very important aspect of EDM: listening to the needs of the individual association.
I wouldn’t say we have a tailor-made ambulance, but they are undeniably very attentive to what you ask of them: always courteous, they take our requests very well”.
AMBULANCE FITTINGS: TO VISIT THE EDM BOOTH AT EMERGENCY EXPO CLICK HERE
A less technical and more personal question. Ten years as a rescuer: what is your best and worst memory of these years dedicated to rescuing?
“There are so many memories, almost all of them linked to what we do.
I volunteer because I meet people and because people are in need.
And to see in people’s eyes a thank you, an acknowledgement of what you do, is satisfying.
My best memories are almost all linked to that look of gratitude.
The bad memories, in a mirror image, are linked to what we encounter in our service on our streets and in our homes, especially in recent times.
The pandemic has left its mark on all of us because it is one thing to learn about it from the news, but quite another to be there.
At the end of the year, what do you wish for your association and your colleagues in the rest of Italy?
“I wish you a Merry Christmas and a very prosperous 2022… hoping that we all come out of this pandemic together.
I wish my association the same enthusiasm that keeps us going and brings new young people to train and become part of our family.
Because in fact, in an association you become family.
I wish my colleagues in the other associations a sense of family in their situations”.
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