HART, Mich. — A new collaboration between Trinity Health and the Hart Area Fire Department is cutting emergency response times at Silver Lake Sand Dunes in half, giving injured visitors a better chance of receiving care within the critical "golden hour."
Thousands of people visit Silver Lake Sand Dunes every year, and with that comes a range of emergencies. Lieutenant Johnathan Hughgart of the Hart Area Fire Department has spent 16 years responding to them.
"All different kinds of rescues, from simple medical emergencies to car crashes, extrications, any kind of rescue you can think of, we've probably done it out here," Hughgart said.
Before the new program, response times were a serious concern. Units were stationed in Hart, roughly 12 minutes from the base of the dunes, and then had to rely on a Department of Natural Resources truck to reach the actual scene.
"[For] EMS, we're stationed in Hart, and it's a good 12 minute response time to at least from when we get in the ambulance until we get to the base of the dunes where we started today. So, it takes about 12 minutes, and then we used to load up into a DNR truck and the DNR would take us out here to where the crash was. And that would take, you know, another anywhere from 10-15 minutes just to get the patient, and they haven't had any treatment from that point. So, you're already looking close to 30 minutes before than medical personnel is attending that patient," Hughgart said.
In trauma situations, that delay can be life-threatening.
"Very critical. So, we really want in trauma scenarios, we really want those patients to a hospital within an hour, and we've already chewed up 30 minutes of that hour just getting to the patient first," Hughgart said.
Trinity Health hospitals in Shelby and Muskegon teamed up with local fire departments, EMS, and the DNR to create the Dune Extraction Plan. Since Memorial Day, the Hart Area Fire Department has been stationing 2 medical first responders on the dunes every weekend from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m.
The results have been measurable. Angela Schiller, who coordinates the trauma program at Trinity Health Shelby, said response times have improved significantly.
"Before you knew it, we were at 31 to 38 minutes from the time of call to when they actually left the sand dune. So it was great, we've seen some good improvement," Schiller said.
Schiller called the program "a great example of how collaboration and data-driven decision-making can lead to positive change."
"You hear the word 'Golden Hour', and that's really important with traumas. We want to make sure we see some results, which means that we want to get our patients to the hospital within that golden hour, and we're really making those times at this point, and that's great," Schiller said.
The program currently runs only on weekends and is funded by Oceana County and the Hart Area Fire Department. Organizers are exploring ways to expand it, potentially through state funding, local government support, or community donations.
Hughgart said the community response to the program has been overwhelmingly positive.
"It's been a godsend, I think. And people enjoy seeing us out here, people stop us all the time and thank us for being out here, and just having that visibility and they're knowing someone that's trained and with the fire department, they greatly appreciate it," Hughgart said.
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