The European Medical Emergency Society announces two additions to its advisory board: Merry J. McSwain, BSN, MSN, (Ret.) ACNP and Jon R. Krohmer, MD, FACEP, FAEMS.
Merry J. McSwain, BSN, MSN, (Ret.) ACNP
Merry J. McSwain fell in love with EMS as a teenager in the early-1980s. She began her career as an NREMT-Ambulance at the age of 18 and NREMT-Paramedic at 21. She worked the streets for more than 10 years, primarily for the New Orleans Health Department – EMS, a 911 third-service for Orleans Parish, in New Orleans, Louisiana.
McSwain attended the University of Alabama at Birmingham where she earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Nursing and Master’s Degree Nurse Practitioner in Acute Critical Care. Merry was employed by Tulane Medical Center in New Orleans for the majority of her nursing career. With her unique experience and insight as an EMT, bedside nurse and advanced practitioner, she could appreciate the disconnect between EMS and hospital staff. As EMS liaison, she worked diligently to improve these intwined relationships by developing and implementing policies and procedures, performance metrics and process improvements, inclusive of EMS agencies and hospital departments.
In addition, she has multiple publications in prehospital articles and textbooks.
McSwain knew first-hand her father’s passion for improving the treatment of the trauma patient, the imperative role of EMS, emergency department and critical care surgery. His dedication to improving trauma patient outcomes and continuing education was second to none. She is privileged to honor his passion and continue his legacy through the Council of Pre-Hospital Medicine of the European Society of Medical Emergency.
She also serves as a trustee of the McSwain Charitable Trust, and on the boards of the McSwain Trauma Education Project, the National EMS Museum, New Orleans EMS Foundation and the Southern Delta Region Rolls Royce Club.
Jon R. Krohmer, MD, FACEP, FAEMS
Jon R. Krohmer is an EMS physician/consultant with over 45 years of EMS experience as a field clinician, educator and leader. He is also an adjunct associate professor at the Michigan State University College of Human Medicine. He has recently retired as the director of the NHTSA Office of EMS in the Department of Transportation and as the EMS Medical Director for the Caroline County (MD) Department of Emergency Services.
He also served as the NHTSA acting associate administrator for Research and Program Development from October 2018 to January 2020. Previously, he was the principal deputy assistant secretary for DHS Office of Health Affairs and DHS Deputy Chief Medical Officer. He began serving in that position in September 2006 and served as the acting assistant secretary for Health Affairs and chief medical officer from August 2008 to August 2009.
Dr. Krohmer was an attending physician and director of emergency medical services (EMS), emergency medicine residency and Department of Emergency Medicine at the Spectrum Health Butterworth Campus in Grand Rapids, MI, associate professor of Emergency Medicine at the College of Human Medicine at Michigan State University, EMS medical director of Kent County Emergency Medical Services and was the medical director for the West Michigan Metropolitan Medical Response System and the Region 6 Consortium. Dr. Krohmer received his undergraduate degree at Ferris State College, School of Pharmacy in Big Rapids, MI, and is a graduate of the University of Michigan Medical School in Ann Arbor. He completed his emergency medicine residency and EMS Fellowship at Wright State University in Dayton, OH. He is board certified in emergency medicine and emergency medical services.
