Sanford Fargo to host forum on emergency medical services
Oct. 21, 2026
Contact:
Nathan Aamodt
Sanford Health Media Relations
(701) 200-6080/nathan.aamodt@sanfordhealth.org
FARGO, N.D. – Sanford Health Fargo is hosting a community breakfast on emergency medical services.
The forum is invite only and takes place on Wednesday, Oct. 28, from 7:30 to 9 a.m., in the Barnyard Building at the Red River Valley Fairgrounds. The community breakfast will include a brief presentation, followed by a panel discussion and question and answer session with the audience. Steven Briggs, M.D., Sanford Fargo chief physician, leads a panel that will include:
• Tim Meyer, Sanford Fargo senior director of emergency services
• Heather Lundeby, Sanford Fargo AirMed nursing manager
• Jason VanValkenburg, M.D., Sanford Fargo emergency medicine physician
• Kathy Lonski, Sanford Ambulance improvement advisor
Through conversation with Sanford EMS leaders and team members, the panel will explore how care begins in the field, the partnerships that connect EMS with other public safety agencies and the people and resources it takes to provide advanced care across the region. Guests will have the opportunity to get an up-close look at the Sanford AirMed helicopter, ambulances and several specialized emergency response vehicles while learning more about the lifesaving services the Sanford Fargo EMS teams provide throughout the region.
Today’s EMS teams provide much more than transportation. Paramedics and EMTs assess patients, begin treatment and communicate with hospital teams while patients are still in the field. For time-sensitive conditions such as heart attack, stroke and trauma, that early assessment and coordination can help prepare specialty teams and resources before the patient arrives.
Sanford Fargo continues to expand the advanced care available before patients reach the hospital. In 2025, Sanford Ambulance introduced whole blood transfusion, allowing blood replacement to begin in the field for critically injured or ill patients. Sanford AirMed extends those capabilities by connecting patients to advanced and specialized care by air when needed.
Sanford provides education for EMTs and paramedics and, in partnership with North Dakota State College of Science, offers a paid paramedic apprenticeship program that provides a direct pathway into the profession. Each year, Sanford Fargo trains approximately 100 emergency medical responder students, 150 to 200 EMT students and 25 paramedic students.
Sanford Ambulance first earned accreditation from the Commission on Accreditation of Ambulance Services (CAAS) in 2003 and has maintained that accreditation for more than 20 years. Sanford Ambulance also received the American Heart Association’s highest Mission: Lifeline recognition every year since ethe program began and is one of only 25 EMS organizations nationally to achieve that distinction.
Media is invited to attend this event. Please RSVP to nathan.aamodt@sanfordhealth.org
About Sanford Health
Sanford Health, the largest rural health system in the United States, is dedicated to transforming the healthcare experience and providing access to world-class healthcare in America’s heartland. Headquartered in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, the organization has 60,000 employees and serves more than 2.5 million patients and nearly 415,000 health plan members across the upper Midwest including South Dakota, North Dakota, Minnesota, Wyoming, Iowa, Wisconsin and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. The integrated nonprofit health system includes a network of 60 hospitals, 315 clinic locations, 145 senior care communities, 4,900 physicians and advanced practice providers and 1,100 active clinical trials and studies. The organization’s transformational virtual care initiative brings patients closer to care with access to nearly 80 specialties. Nearly 450 residents and fellows are trained each year through over 40 graduate medical education programs, with Sanford Health serving as the primary funding source for 75% of the programs. Sanford Health also includes 92 retail pharmacies, including Sanford and Lewis Drug pharmacies with locations in 6 states, and more than 300 pharmacists. Learn more about Sanford Health’s commitment to shaping the future of rural healthcare across the lifespan at sanfordhealth.org or Sanford Health News.
