By: Sarah Jacob

For seven years, Dr. Ben Bring has been a wonderful asset for the American Red Cross Central Ohio Chapter’s First Aid Services Team (FAST).  Not only does he review our medical protocols, but he also serves alongside other FAST volunteers at events at Ohio Stadium. We are so thankful for his leadership and enthusiasm for FAST and the Red Cross overall.

I’m thankful for Dr. Bring taking the time to sit down with me to answer some questions so we can learn a little bit more about him.
 

You've been part of Red Cross for seven years. What keeps you active as a volunteer?

My most favorite thing about working with the Red Cross is supporting the mission for providing patient care and to support so many local community events every year. I am so proud of the work that the First Aid Services Team (FAST) does daily, while serving some of the largest sporting events, concerts, and community events in the State of Ohio. Serving as the medical director of the Red Cross FAST team has been one of my most favorite roles over the years!
 

Do you have an experience that stands out to you since joining Red Cross?

One of my favorite highlights of my career with Red Cross FAST has been with the recognition of life-saving events that our team members have been directly involved in. This past year at Ohio Stadium, two of our outstanding volunteers helped save a life during one of the football games! As the medical director, I always enjoy celebrating the excellence of our team members – especially at our annual Chili Cookoff!
 

What is your favorite event to work as FAST Medical Director? Or most challenging/rewarding?

Wow this is a very difficult one to answer! The Cap City is such a fun community event and supports the healthy active lifestyle while putting on one of the best post-race parties in the world. The Arnold Sports Festival is such a unique event because we can provide care to tens of thousands of athletes from all over the world in 4 days. We are fortunate to have such a strong sports medicine team at OhioHealth that can support this event with more than 170 volunteers each year. The Arnold is definitely one of the most challenging events because it is across 4 days, involves thousands of athletes across multiple sports, along with dozens of event directors to work with as well. And finally, the Columbus Marathon is the most meaningful marathon in America – supporting patient care and research here in Columbus
 

What is your favorite event to see our volunteers engage outside of Ohio Health events?

Working a Saturday football game at the Horseshoe is one of the best ways to see our team in action. We have a team of tremendous leaders, veteran volunteers, and enthusiastic medical professionals that provide the highest level of care to the patrons at these events. I am so proud to watch our team work collaboratively together with clear communication and working directly with our event coordinators. Additionally, we have been so grateful for our partnership with Columbus Fire and their team of medics to provide the highest level of care for all members who attend these events.
 

Which event is your favorite of the Ohio Health events to see FAST?

Most certainly the road races – especially the OhioHealth Cap City Half Marathon! We always have a great showing of volunteers at these events – even when the weather is terrible! Over the past few years, our team has navigated very difficult weather circumstances including rain, sleet, heat, and thunderstorms while staying as a strong force for patient care.
 

What is it about the Central Ohio community that makes the work we do so important, regarding FAST/Red Cross?

Central Ohio – and Columbus specifically – continues to grow at such a rapid pace with more sporting events, concerts, and community celebrations each year. We are such a unique city that hosts world-class events that it is important for our patrons who attend these events to know they are in a safe environment. Our Red Cross FAST team always works to ensure we are helping provide the safest environment for those attending these events. We are especially proud of the support that FAST provides at all Ohio State athletic events as this is probably one of the largest partners that we serve.
 

Any kind of ritual/routine you have to prep for the large-scale events you support/oversee?

The key to success is preparation and check-lists – these are probably my two favorite things to do leading up to large event planning. We have also been fortunate to have a really strong team that helps us oversee all these events, which makes serving as the medical director so much fun. We always teach our team to be great problem solvers and communicators among our team. This has given us a lot of success in helping to serve these large events over the years. It is really important to make sure you always have coffee at the events for volunteers, and make sure to stop by 23-A at Ohio Stadium to get some of Sharon’s delicious food items!
 

Dr. Bring, let’s talk about your “day job” tell us about you and your current job title(s) at Ohio Health.

I am fortunate to have many different job titles within OhioHealth, and my primary role is serving as the program director for the Dublin Family Medicine Residency program. Our team has 18 resident physicians and 7 attending physicians who serve as teaching faculty with our group. I am currently in my 6th year in this role (14th year with OhioHealth), and I also get to teach medical students and sports medicine fellows as well. Additionally, I serve as the medical director for the OhioHealth Capital City Half and Grandview Half Marathons, the Arnold Sports Festival, and the Columbus Marathon. Currently I am in my 4th year as the team physician for Columbus Academy high school as well.
 

What made you want to pursue the medical field? Growing up I was fortunate to have many different mentors in the medical field that served as exceptional role models for me. When I was in elementary school, our physical education teacher Jim Stahl (also an athletic trainer) had all the students learn the bones in the human body as part of our day-to-day teaching. He was really the first person to spark an interest in medicine for me. When I got to high school, I spent a lot of time in our athletic training room working on different injuries with our head athletic trainer Kim Stercula, who is a hall of famer in the athletic training field. She was instrumental in my decision to go into medical school and pursue sports medicine.
 

Interesting/fun fact about you?

I love to travel, backpack, and visit cool places all over the world. Over the years, I have been fortunate to travel with my family to 39 national parks as well as do some really cool backpacking trips with a few friends. Some of the highlights include summiting Mt. Whitney in one day, completing the Teton Crest Trail, and most recently a trip to the Enchantment Lakes in the Cascade Mountains in Washington. We are planning on doing some more fun outdoor trips in the coming years as well!