Board Members

EMS personnel photo ambulance/hospital photo faces of WEMSN photo

 

Joseph D. Hansen

WEMSN Position: Executive Director, Board Member
Current Employment: Chief Operating Officer, Critical Illness & Trauma Foundation
EMS/Health Care/Public Safety – Related Experience: NREMT-B – 30 years; Director, Sweet Grass County Ambulance Service, Ret. – 15 years; Past-president, National Association of EMTs; Serves on regional and statewide trauma advisory committees.

Sally Buckles

WEMSN Position: Board Member
Current Employment: President, Montana Emergency Medical Services Association Coordinator, Jefferson County Disaster and Emergency Services
EMS/Health Care/Public Safety – Related Experience: REMT-B since February 1978; Past Director, Boulder Ambulance Service - 12 years; Retired Deputy Sheriff, Jefferson County – 17.5 years

Gary Wingrove

WEMSN Position: Board Member
Current Employment: Government Relations & Strategic Affairs, May Clinic Medical Transport
EMS/Health Care/Public Safety – Related Experience: Paramedic (ret.); Past President – North Central EMS Cooperative; Advisory Board Chair – Rural Domestic Preparedness Consortium; Chair – NRHA EMS Issue Group

Kristin Juliar

WEMSN Position: Treasurer of Board of Directors
Current Employment: Director, Montana Office of Rural Health/Area Health Education Center
EMS/Health Care/Public Safety – Related Experience: Director, ORH/AHEC; Chair, Montana Healthcare Workforce Advisory Committee; Former Director, Minnesota Healthcare Education Industry Partnership for Minnesota State Colleges and Universities; Former Director, Region Nine Development Commission in Southern Minnesota, which operated Region Nine EMS Joint Powers Board for 9 rural counties.

Robert Brown

WEMSN Position: President of Board of Directors
Current Employment: Firefighter/EMT, Livingston Fire/Rescue
EMS/Health Care/Public Safety – Related Experience: Interim Fire Chief, EMS Director; Involved in EMS - 23 years; Graduate, National Fire Academy in Management of EMS and Advanced Leadership Issues in EMS; Watch Commander; Technician Level in weapons of Mass Destruction

Kevin Fitzgerald

WEMSN Position: Board Member
Current Employment: EMS Systems Manager, EMS & Trauma Systems Section, MT DPHHS
EMS/Health Care/Public Safety – Related Experience: EMT since 1982, EMT-P since 1995; worked throughout Montana at various levels; spent most of career in Helena at St. Peter’s Hospital and Ambulance

Kip Smith

WEMSN Position: Board Member
Current Employment: Director, Montana Health Research and Education Foundation (MHREF)
EMS/Health Care/Public Safety – Related Experience: Former Associate Director, Montana Primary Care Association; former Director of Human Resources at rural community hospital; Chair, National Advisory Committee for the Technical Assistance and Services Center (TASC); Board member, Rural Health Resource Center; Task force member, Flex Monitoring Program

Nels D. Sanddal

WEMSN Position: Secretary of Board of Directors
Current Employment: Chief Executive Officer, Critical Illness & Trauma Foundation
EMS/Health Care/Public Safety – Related Experience: NREMT-B; Involved in EMS since the 1970s; Board Member, Critical Illness & Trauma Foundation – 21 years; Interim Fire Chief, Gallatin River Ranch Rural Fire Department; Committee member, Institute of Medicine

Justin Grohs

WEMSN Position: Vice President of Board of Directors
Current Employment: Crew Chief, Great Falls Emergency Services
EMS/Health Care/Public Safety – Related Experience: 18 year career in EMS as a field paramedic and EMS Management in both rural and urban EMS systems, including volunteer systems, private, and fire-based; Lead instructor, Wilderness Medical Associates; Managing Owner, Extreme Medicine

Tim Brester

WEMSN Position: Board Member
Current Employment: Director, Polson Ambulance