Ashley Houtz Named EMS Provider of the Year

Ashley Houtz, Advanced EMT, Evangelical Regional Mobile Medical Services (ERMMS), was recently presented the EMS Provider of the Year Award through Geisinger Medical Center.

Emergency medical services (EMS) providers and fellow first responders were recognized for service to their community recently during Geisinger’s EMS Provider of the Year Awards reception, which took place just before a Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders home game at PNC Field in Moosic in June.

Houtz was nominated for the award by another EMS provider for her quick action, critical thinking, and application of emergency medicine skill during an April vehicle accident. The accident included entrapment and Advanced Life Support was not readily available due to poor weather conditions. Houtz relied on her recently acquired skills as an Advanced EMT to assess condition and perform lifesaving interventions as crews extricated the patient from the vehicle and transported to Geisinger for trauma treatment.

Houtz began working with ERMMS as an EMT in October 2021, and obtained her Advanced Medical Technician certification in 2023. She continues to deliver lifesaving services in her Advanced EMT role at ERMMS.

ERMMS is the subsidiary of Evangelical Community Hospital that provides emergency response services to surrounding communities. Since its inception in 2019, ERMMS has added the opportunity to hire and provide Advanced EMTs to the region and has established an EMT Training Program in the area through a collaborative effort with Penn College and for high-school-aged students, with SUN Area Technical Institute.

For more information on EMS careers at Evangelical Community Hospital. Visit www.EvanHospital.com/Careers.