First of its kind Mobile Clinic for Firefighters unveiled at Woodlands Emergency Training Center

THE WOODLANDS, TX – Recently, U.S. Representative Morgan Luttrell of Texas’ 8th Congressional District, Houston Fire Chief Thomas Munoz, 1st Response Family Clinic founders Jerry & Desi Bittner, and numerous other fire chiefs, family members, and civic leaders gathered at The Woodlands Emergency Training Center for the unveiling of the 1st Response Mobile Clinic.

This mobile clinic, which is the first of its kind in the country and the first of many for the 1st Response Family Clinic, will allow firefighters to get their physicals right at their departments.

1st Response Family Clinic opened on September 11, 2019. The inaugural day was intentional as the founders came from the fire service and felt compelled to make a difference within the fire service and give back to the fire service and the community.

Jerry Bittner served more than four decades as a firefighter in The Woodlands, rising to the position of chief before retiring. Jerry also volunteered for many years at the Spring Fire Department. When he retired, he knew he had more to give, as his 40-plus years were just the preparation for his new calling.

Desi Bittner also served, rising to the rank of Paramedic/Engine Operator. When Desi was 40, she suffered a grade 4 subarachnoid bleed. Her outlook was grim, and she spent a month in intensive care, surrounded by her ‘Fire Family.’ Desi, a Family Nurse Practitioner, recovered and together they found their second calling in helping First Responders to be physically fit, mentally engaged, and emotionally prepared to do their job. Having lost too many dear friends in the brother and sisterhood of the fire service to cancer, heart issues, and suicide, they have committed themselves to making sure firefighters get annual health screenings.

The two existing clinics in Conroe and Jersey Village currently provide in-depth NFPA 1582 screenings to more than 5,000 local firefighters each year, including The Houston Fire Department, fire departments in Walker, Montgomery, Harris, Brazoria, Fort Bend, Bastrop, Austin and Galveston County. These multi-hour annual screenings are specifically designed for firefighters and include comprehensive lab work, physical assessment and stress test, a pulmonary function test, vision, hearing and mental health screenings, and an ultrasound screening from the neck to the groin looking for organ abnormalities and cardiac function.

Now these services are expanded and made much more convenient by the addition of the custom-made 53-foot mobile clinic, which will take the mission of providing affordable high-quality health and wellness care to first responders directly to fire stations throughout the state of Texas, and beyond.

At the unveiling ceremony, Houston Fire Department Assistant Chief Mohammad Koochack gave a shocking number on how many medical issues these physicals are found in local firefighters. South Montgomery County Fire Chief Troy Koteras talked about the recent cancer death of Firefighter Corby Mackenzie. And South Montgomery County Battalion Chief Mike Johnson shared his own medical story.

The World Health Organization’s International Agency for Research on Cancer classifies firefighter occupational exposure as a group 1 carcinogen. Additionally, PTSD, suicide, diabetes, and lung and heart issues are all too prevalent in fire service retirees. By adding this mobile clinic to its arsenal to fight these maladies, 1st Response Family Clinic has taken their mission of ‘protecting our protectors’ to the next level.

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