Moore County EMS receives Hero award
5:08 p.m. Nov. 12, 2025
Moore County EMS
St. Thomas EMS Hero Award presentation (left to right): Shannon Morphis, St Thomas Director of EMS & ED Outreach; Chad Brown, TN Dept of Health EMS Division; Rheannon Gagnon, Critical Care Paramedic; Zach Means, Critical Care Paramedic; and Jason Deal, Public Safety Director. Not pictured: Jackie Burton, Advanced EMT.
On Wednesday, Nov. 12, Metro Moore County EMS critical care paramedics Rheannon Gagnon and Zach Means, along with Advanced EMT Jackie Burton, received the St. Thomas EMS Hero Award. Shannon Morphis, Director of EMS and ED Outreach for St. Thomas, visited to personally present the award.
“Thank you, Metro Moore County EMS, for your outstanding and compassionate care,” Morphis said. “You are a true example of always being patient advocates. It was my pleasure to award your team the Ascension Saint Thomas EMS Hero Award.”
She noted that without the team’s timely interventions and thorough assessment, the patient’s outcome could have been very different.
Metro Moore County EMS Director Jason Deal added, “We continue to challenge our teams to be the best patient advocates they can be. With limited healthcare resources in our county, our EMS responders not only serve as AEMTs, Paramedics, and Critical Care Paramedics – they also wear the hat of a medical caseworker, treating every patient like family.
“Recognizing when a patient is experiencing a myocardial infarction based on EKG rhythm and presentation allows our crews to help patients make appropriate destination decisions and get them to the right place for the right kind of care – especially when minutes count.”
