It’s one thing to be remembered in your profession, but one Redmond woman took home a prestigious award for a position she left nearly two decades ago.

Debbie Lane was recently named state EMS Educator of the Year by Oregon Emergency Medical Services and the Oregon Health Authority. Lane has worked for 41 years with what is now St. Charles Redmond. From 1985-95, she also served as coordinator of Central Oregon Community College’s EMT program, teaching nearly 300 students.

While Lane dropped down to part-time teaching in 1995 and gave that up to focus on nursing a few years later, she continues to have an impact because of the people she taught.

Jefferson County EMS Assistant Chief Mike Lepin, who nominated Lane, said she “created” around 125 paramedics, many of them now in leadership roles.

They include Redmond Fire Battalion Chief Dick Knorr and Capt. Steve Pengra, former Bend Fire EMS Chief Tom Wright and chiefs in Warrenton and Black Butte Ranch.

“She was tough and demanded a lot from her students, but Debbie gave a lot of herself and helped her students to succeed even after the course was completed,” Lepin wrote in his nomination letter. “Because of this, the quality of the providers she produced has been without question.”

Lane’s legacy has only grown since she left EMT instruction, and her students have become mentors, leaders and lifesavers, Lepin said. But she just now received formal recognition for it.

Lane said she was surprised to hear she received the award.

“I was like, ‘Oh my gosh,’” she said. “I haven’t been in active teaching for a long time. It’s such an honor to be recognized by my fellow providers.”

Lane, 62, started working at what was then Central Oregon District Hospital in 1975. Lane even came in to work at the hospital during breaks while earning her bachelor’s degree in nursing at Oregon Health & Science University in Portland.

She began working full time as a nurse there in 1980, two years after graduating.

Lane started volunteering in 1981 as an ambulance EMT with Redmond Fire and Rescue, with the understanding she wouldn’t have to actually fight fires. For years she worked on both the pre-hospital side of medicine, as well as in the emergency room, though never both on the same incident.

The 12-hour shifts in nursing, which allowed for several days off at a time, gave Lane a chance to work as a paramedic on her off days. She said the EMT and nursing jobs went hand-in-hand.

“I just got bit by the emergency bug,” she said. “I love emergency medicine.”

Taking the position at COCC in 1985 allowed Lane to pass what she learned to others. She coordinated all the school’s EMT training and taught night classes.

Her students have gone on to become EMS leaders across the state

“I still have former students all over Central Oregon,” she said. “It’s been really fun to see them advance their careers and know they did well.”

Lane was demanding of her students because emergencies in the vast, unpopulated region offer special challenges, she said. At the time, air ambulance service was in its infancy in Central Oregon.

“A lot of times they’ll work on top of Santiam Pass, or between Burns and Bend where there’s just a lot of sagebrush and jackrabbits, but there’s no medical care,” she said.

Lane maintains her paramedic certification, but hasn’t practiced since 1998. She continues to work as an emergency room nurse, though she has cut back her hours in recent years. She would like to work another three to five years before retiring.

“I still enjoy taking care of patients and working in the emergency room,” she said. “You get them in the emergency room and they’re stressed for whatever reason. It’s fun to take care of them and see them feel better and get better.”

Lane still goes in for periodic continuing education classes. Even though she is “Educator of the Year,” she still looks forward to learning from others.

“I think emergency medicine is very dynamic, it’s changing all the time because of research and technology,” she said. “There’s always something new coming down the line and that makes it interesting.”

In her spare time, Lane and her husband compete in American Kennel Club dog obedience and agility competitions with their border collies. While winning events there is nice, she still appreciates being honored for teaching others.

“It was something I was able to do outside my hospital career, but I was able to use my hospital experience to enhance my teaching knowledge,” she said.

Making the award extra special is that it is named for Gail Marsh Madsen, a longtime friend of Lane’s, who worked in emergency services in Washington County.

“I was so honored to find out I’d gotten the award in the first place, and then to find out it’s named after her made it even more special,” Lane said.

— Reporter: 541-548-2186, gfolsom@redmondspokesman.com