PHOTO: From left, EMT officers Andrew Vedrenne and John Rudd display some EMT tools at Victoria Fire Department Station Two, 606 E. Goodwin Ave. This equipment is used by firefighters/EMTs to provide first aid to patients with stroke symptoms.
The City of Victoria’s Fire Department has earned the American Heart Association’s 2025 Mission: Lifeline EMS Gold achievement award for its commitment to offering rapid and research-based care to people experiencing the most severe forms of heart attacks and strokes, ultimately saving lives.
Mission: Lifeline EMS is the American Heart Association’s national initiative to advance the system of care for patients with high-risk, time-sensitive health conditions, such as severe heart attacks and strokes. The program helps reduce barriers to prompt treatment—starting from when 911 is called, to EMS transport and continuing through hospital treatment and discharge. Optimal care for heart attack and stroke patients takes coordination between the individual prehospital providers and healthcare systems.
To earn the recognition, the fire department must successfully meet seven different criteria involving the care of patients who are experiencing strokes or heart attacks on a call 75% of the time. The Victoria Fire Department routinely hits those markers over 90% of the time.
The fire department also earned the American Heart Association’s Stroke Honor Roll recognition, which honors departments that work with area hospitals to deliver comprehensive care to patients. The goal is to have patients receive hospital-based stroke care within 90 minutes of EMS contact.
The Victoria Fire Department has consistently received the American Heart Association’s gold-level award since the department began applying for this recognition. To date, this will be the tenth consecutive Gold award that the department has received and the eleventh Mission Lifeline award that they have earned in total.
“The receipt of this award demonstrates to the citizens of Victoria that the Victoria Fire Department strives to deliver the best care possible,” Fire Department Assistant Chief Mark Martyn said. “Our department members consistently work to deliver high-quality service to the public, and it is their dedication, skills and abilities that allow us to routinely exceed the requirements of receiving this award.”
To learn more about the Victoria Fire Department, visit www.victoriatx.gov/fire.