North Canton Firefighter and Aultman Employee Receives Proclamation from City

North Canton resident Chuck Bell recently was named Aultman Health Foundation's Employee of the Year.

And the accolades just keep coming.

Bell, also a part-time firefighter for the North Canton Fire Department, received a proclamation from the city at Monday night's North Canton City Council meeting inside City Council Chambers.

"To become employee of the month is one challenge, but to become employee of the year, that's one out of 5,000 employees," Mayor David Held said Monday night. "That's an incredible achievement and we're very proud."

Bell, a patient transporter at Aultman Hospital, was recognized as Aultman Health Foundation's “You Make a Difference” Employee of the Year during the organization’s annual recognition dinner May 10. The foundation cited Bell's quick-thinking and care for patients in a North Canton Patch announcement about his achievement.

This past September, Chuck was taking a patient from their room on the sixth floor to the vascular lab. The patient seemed to be fine until they got onto the elevator. The patient then started to become short of breath and began to turn blue. Chuck quickly took the patient to the vascular lab, where he alerted a nurse of the patient’s condition. They immediately called a rapid response. Chuck stayed around to help, even running to get the code cart for the nurses. Soon after, the patient was transferred to the Medical Intensive Care Unit for treatment. There is a good chance that Chuck’s fast actions may have saved this patient’s life.

Bell has been with the North Canton Fire Department since 2003 and served for a firefighter for NASCAR in 2007. He was inspired to become a firefighter by his grandfather, who also was a firefighter, Held said.

"Congratulations on this award," said Councilman Jeff Peters, also head of the Personnel and Safety Committee, at Monday night's meeting. "You're not only a source of pride for your family, but for us here, the citizens of North Canton."