Meet a First Responder – Mark Mathison is a Duluth Paramedic of 46 Years

Meet a First Responder – Mark Mathison is a Duluth Paramedic of 46 Years

Duluth paramedic Mark Mathison has seen it all. He has delivered babies. He has reversed countless drug overdoses with the lifesaving medication Narcan. The scenarios he responds to daily would undoubtedly boggle your mind. “We respond to everything from toothaches to major traumas,” he said. “As paramedics, we are under obligation to respond to 911 calls for whatever reason.” With 46 years of service, Mathison is the most senior team member at Mayo Clinic Ambulance Service. In addition to his current role as a paramedic, he has worked as an EMT, dispatcher, helicopter paramedic, and field training officer. But, whatever you do, please don’t refer to his position as an “ambulance driver.” The highly skilled, life-saving heroes in this field deserve to be called by their rightful titles: EMTs or paramedics (more on this distinction later). With all his experience, you would be blessed to have Mathison on the scene if you ever need to call 911. But – and, please don’t take this the wrong way – he hopes he never has to show up at your door. “The longer you can go in life without needing an ambulance, the better off you are,” he noted with a wry chuckle. Background Mathison was born in Denver, Colorado, but grew up in many cities and towns across Minnesota, including Rochester, Fridley, Plainview, Annandale, and Minneapolis. His father, the late Dr. Robert Mathison, started his career as a primary care physician and later became an anesthesiologist. His late mother, Barbara, had a nursing degree but ultimately stayed home to raise Mark and his five siblings. Mathison recalls having a pretty idyllic childhood. “I played football, baseball, and hockey,” he said. “And us kids were very outdoorsy. We’d head outdoors at dawn and come back in when the streetlights came on.” He shared some early memories about the medical profession. “As a primary doctor, my dad did house calls. A lot of our Sunday drives included riding along with him to different farmhouses to see his patients.” When he was in 3^rd grade, Mathison saw his first ambulance. “When we were living in Annandale, my friend got hit by a car. They called my dad, who showed up to help but then had to call an ambulance. My friend had a broken femur but was eventually ok.” Early Training as a First Responder While he was still in high school at Mayo Senior High in Rochester, Mathison had a friend who worked for Gold Cross as a dispatcher. “I thought that might be fun to do,” he said. “911 was just getting started back then.” At age 16 or 17, he completed the roughly 100-hour course and became certified as an EMT. He was then hired at Gold Cross. You may wonder what the difference is between an EMT and a paramedic. “Being an EMT is the foundation of being a paramedic,” Mathison said. “EMTs recognize strokes and heart attacks, can control bleeding, do splinting, address head injuries and psychiatric emergencies, and handle basic airways. “The role of a paramedic has more physiology involved,” he explained. “We do advanced airways (endotracheal tubes), start IVs, administer medications, handle all types of cardiac issues – including reading ECGs (electrocardiogram) – and have more knowledge about drug interactions.” After graduating high school, Mathison thought he’d become a veterinarian and attended the University of Minnesota for a time. But ultimately, that wasn’t the right fit. When his father transferred to Duluth, Mathison joined him. He was hired at Gold Cross Ambulance in Duluth as an EMT on December 8, 1978.

46 Years of Saving Lives While at Gold Cross, Mathison started out as a nighttime dispatcher, and would also “run calls” with his boss during the day. He started training as a paramedic immediately. After passing his test through the National Registry of Emergency Medical Technicians, he was certified. As noted, over the years, Mathison has worn different “hats” in his field. “I flew for ten years through Luke’s One Helicopter,” he noted. “There, we handled patient transfers from one ICU to another and on-scene trauma calls such as car accidents.” Later, he worked as a field training officer for 20 years, helping train new paramedics. He has spent his remaining years as a paramedic. In 1994, Gold Cross was purchased by Mayo Clinic Ambulance Service, which remains the only ambulance service in Duluth. When being driven in an ambulance, patients can select the hospital of their choice. Shifts + Day in the Life Mathison reports to work at the Mayo Clinic Ambulance Service offices at 4505 West Michigan Street. His team’s geographic range includes the southern 1/3 of St. Louis County, so they’ll go as far as Cotton. Mathison works 12-hour day shifts, but Mayo is staffed round the clock. A paramedic’s day starts by checking out their “truck” (ambulance) to ensure it is well-stocked with equipment. However, “We are on duty from the moment we show up,” he noted. “We have to walk in the door ready to go. The night shift is ready to be relieved by the time we arrive.”

Stories As noted, paramedics respond to any and every 911 call you can imagine. In addition to the fire and police departments, paramedics are the first on the scene for any life-threatening scenario your mind can conjure up. Mathison shared a few memorable stories. “Once, I got dispatched to help a lady who was having abdominal pains. When we arrived, she was crowning – she didn’t know she was pregnant.” Mathison has, in fact, successfully delivered four babies and was on-scene for three more. He recalls a 90-year-old man who had fallen and broken some ribs. When Mathison arrived, the patient was crying – it was the day of his wife’s funeral, and he took a tumble while getting ready. As he wasn’t considered critical, Mathison – with the patient in an ambulance – kindly stopped at the funeral first so this man could say goodbye to his wife. And, longtime Duluthians will remember the tragic story of the woman who died after becoming caught in – and bisected by – the Aerial Lift Bridge in 1990. Mathison was the first responder on-scene. One noteworthy – and very unfortunate – trend in his field is the increase in drug overdoses. “In my first 20 years, I gave Narcan maybe five times,” he said. “And, in the last 26 years, I would say we give Narcan at least three times a week.” Personal Mathison and his wife, Joni, who is retired from Lake Superior College, live in Duluth’s Lakeside neighborhood. They have two adult children, Abigail (married to Charley) and Brent (married to Stephanie). The Mathisons have three beloved grandkids—Landon, Emmett, and Amelia—and a Black Lab named Buster. In his free time, Mathison enjoys taking outdoor photos. Some of his favorite places to shoot are Hawk’s Ridge and the Sax-Zim Bog. Being out in nature and spending time with his grandchildren are some of his favorite ways to decompress after work.

Advice After 46 years as a paramedic, Mathison would recommend his profession to others. “It’s so rewarding when my patients have good outcomes,” he said, adding, “But that isn’t always the case. Sometimes we’re the guardian angel and sometimes we’re the grim reaper.” “We definitely need more good people,” he said. “If you don’t want to be a paramedic or EMT, maybe you can consider helping through your community’s volunteer service.” If this job is something you’re contemplating, consider what Mathison says is needed to be good in this role. “You have to be pretty Type A,” he noted. “You have to dig in immediately and do what needs to be done. “And EMS is nothing but change,” he added, referring to how medical intervention procedures evolve as we learn more. “If you don’t like change, you can’t be in this job.” Based on everything he’s seen and experienced, he gave the following life advice: “Hug your kids. You just never know.” ____________________________________________________________________ Andrea Busche is a Duluth + regional freelance writer and small business owner. She is credited with over 1,000 bylines in local print and digital publications, and has been a frequent contributor to Destination Duluth since 2017.