Nissan’s volunteer-led Emergency Response Team provides immediate medical assistance when it’s needed most

One moment, Amanda Green was helping her coworkers at Nissan’s Canton Vehicle Assembly Plant. The next, she woke up in the emergency room.

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One moment, Amanda Green was helping her coworkers at Nissan’s Canton Vehicle Assembly Plant. The next, she woke up in the emergency room. Green had lost consciousness after suffering a severe asthma attack, but thanks to her fast-acting colleagues, she was OK. (Photo: Business Wire)

Green had lost consciousness after suffering a severe asthma attack, but thanks to her fast-acting colleagues, she was OK.

“If it weren’t for them, I probably wouldn’t have made it,” said Green, who works as a paint supervisor at the plant.

When she lost consciousness, the first people on the scene were members of Nissan’s Emergency Response Team (ERT).

Green is one of many Nissan employees who have been positively impacted by the program. Chastity Bilbro, a Nissan technician also based at the Canton facility, had to receive CPR after her colleagues found her unconscious.

“My supervisor, Sam Phillipson, stepped in and performed CPR,” Bilbro said. “I owe my life to him.”

The ERTs consist of employee volunteers who are trained to provide immediate medical assistance until local first responders arrive. ERTs are stationed at all three of Nissan’s U.S. manufacturing locations: Canton, Mississippi; Decherd, Tennessee; and Smyrna, Tennessee.

Steve Harris, an emergency medical technician based at the Smyrna Vehicle Assembly Plant, founded the ERTs in 2009.

“I’ve always had folks that were willing to help, and I thought, ‘Why not put a program together?’” he said.

To become part of the ERT, members undergo basic emergency medical training – including CPR and first aid – so they can be ready to help coworkers in need.

Green said her experience inspired her to become a member of the team.

“I want to be able to help someone else make it home to their family,” she said.

Harris said the ERT program has “grown tremendously” since its founding. It now has over 200 members in Smyrna alone.

“I feel extremely proud because I know we have folks out there that – no matter what – can help take care of the situation,” he said.

Green said ERTs are a reminder that the people surrounding her at work are more than just colleagues.

“Nissan really is a family,” she said.

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