Dr. Robert Dittmeier receives EMS Council's excellence award

WARWICK — Jo Ann Cheney, chairman of the Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Council of Orange County, recently presented the Regional Council 2005 Physician of Excellence Award to Dr. Robert Dittmeier, who serves as director of Emergency Medicine for St. Anthony Community Hospital. Each year the regional award is presented to a New York State licensed physician currently serving the regional EMS system. The selection criteria include dedication, responsibility, professional behavior, ingenuity, special skill or insight in the pre-hospital environment and other important contributions to the community. In addition to his position at the hospital, Dittmeier serves as medical director for the Warwick Valley Volunteer Ambulance Corps, and is an instructor in Advanced Cardiac Life Support and Pediatric Advanced Life Support with the American Heart Association. He also works with numerous groups which promote EMS awareness and improve the quality of pre-hospital care. Dittmeier graduated from Chicago Medical College in 1983, and completed his residency at the Metropolitan Hospital Center in New York City. He is board certified in emergency medicine. “Dr. Dittmeier is an excellent physician, who consistently goes above and beyond the call of duty to assure the best emergency and pre-hospital care possible,” said Barbara Hansen, the hospital staff development coordinator who submitted Dittmeier’s nomination to the Hudson Valley Regional EMS Council. “His dedication to his profession, and skill at promoting teamwork, have often made the difference in life and death situations.” The Hudson Valley Regional EMS Council coordinates and oversees EMS in the six counties of the Hudson Valley. “Our hospital was recently recognized by the Niagara Health Quality Coalition as the number one hospital in the region for treatment of heart attack patients in our Emergency Room,” said Leah Cerkvenik, executive vice president and administrator of St. Anthony Community Hospital. “Dr. Dittmeier has been instrumental in the training and education of our Emergency Room staff, and deserves much of the credit for that recognition.” In accepting his award, Dittmeier stated that it should be shared with all of the dedicated physicians and rescuers in Orange County who have been his mentors and role models. “I only hope,” he said, “that I have begun to instill this same level of passion and commitment within other members of the EMS system that many of my colleagues have nurtured within me.” St. Anthony Community Hospital, a member of Bon Secours Charity Health System, is a non-profit hospital providing services to residents of Orange County, N.Y., and Sussex County, N.J.