Hello,
My name is Susmita Bandekar, and I am honored to join Empress Emergency Medical Services as its new Risk & Safety Manager. I am excited to become part of such a dedicated organization and look forward to getting to know all our staff members over the coming weeks and months.
I bring over nine years of progressive experience in Environmental, Health & Safety (EHS), Risk Management, Occupational Safety, Regulatory Compliance, and Incident Investigation across healthcare, pharmaceutical manufacturing, laboratory, and industrial environments. Throughout my career, I have partnered with employees, supervisors, and leadership teams to develop practical safety solutions, improve compliance, conduct incident investigations, reduce workplace risks, and foster positive safety cultures built on trust and collaboration.
Before joining Empress, I served as an Environmental, Health & Safety Manager within the pharmaceutical industry, where I worked closely with operations, engineering, quality assurance, and executive leadership to strengthen safety programs while supporting business operations. Prior to that, I worked in healthcare as a Safety Officer, where I gained valuable experience in patient safety, infection prevention, emergency preparedness, workplace safety, and regulatory compliance.
People are the top asset
Although every industry has its own unique challenges, one thing has remained constant throughout my career: People are always our greatest asset.
That philosophy aligns perfectly with EMS. Every day, our crews dedicate themselves to caring for patients during some of the most critical moments in their lives. My responsibility is to help ensure that the people who care for our communities are also protected while performing that important work.
One of the reasons I was excited to join Empress is the organization’s strong commitment to its employees and the communities it serves. Over the next several weeks, my focus will be on learning the operation from the people who know it best — the employees. I will be spending time at our stations, riding along with crews, meeting supervisors, visiting departments, and learning how each part of the organization contributes to our mission.
I firmly believe that the best safety programs are built by listening first. Employees’ experiences, ideas, and observations are invaluable, and I encourage everyone to share them openly. Whether it is a concern, a near miss, a suggestion for improvement, or simply an idea that could make someone’s job safer, I want to hear it.
As we continue building our safety culture together, my goal is to work alongside each employee to reduce injuries, vehicle accidents, and workplace incidents while creating an environment where safety is proactive rather than reactive.
I truly believe that safety is everyone’s responsibility, and everyone deserves to return home safely to their families after every shift.
More than anything, I want to be a resource for every employee at Empress. Whether you are a field provider, dispatcher, fleet technician, educator, supervisor, administrator, or member of our support staff, I hope everyone will feel comfortable introducing themselves, asking questions, raising concerns, or sharing ideas.
I am truly grateful for the warm welcome I have already received and am excited to begin this journey. I look forward to building strong relationships, learning from employees’ experiences, and working together to make Empress an even safer place to work.
Fast facts
- 🎓 Education: M.S. in Environmental, Health & Safety Engineering & Project Management (Rochester Institute of Technology)
- 🌍 Originally From: Mumbai, India
- 🏥 Experience: 9+ years in Healthcare, Pharmaceutical Manufacturing, Industrial Safety & Risk Management
- 🚑 At Empress: Passionate about partnering with our crews to strengthen safety and reduce workplace injuries and vehicle incidents
- 🐈 Fun Fact: Proud cat parent to an orange Persian named Siro
- 💬 Favorite Quote: “Safety is everyone’s responsibility, and everyone deserves to return home safely to their families after every shift.”
