Med-Tex Service Inc.

Med-Tex Services Inc. is a safety, health and rescue support contractor providing 24/7 support to clients across the country. Since 1985, the company has been serving the industrial and commercial contracting markets with high angle and confined space rescue/technical rescue services, on-site medical coverage, industrial hygienists and safety professionals for construction projects, turnarounds/shutdowns, outages or similar jobsite assignments. Some of the company’s on-site testing services include substance abuse screening, medical clearance for respirators including pulmonary function tests and respirator fit-testing. In addition, Med-Tex offers a full complement of safety training, which can be conducted at the company’s facility or at client locations.

“We offer the normal menu items of safety training, program writing and field staffing, but we really specialize in high-angle rescue and confined space work in environments such as reactors, sewer mains and tanks,” says Dennis Dougherty, president of Med-Tex. “We’re different from the typical safety consultant because we actually have people out in the field working on the job site in case of an emergency.”

Based in Philadelphia, Med-Tex was started by Dennis’ father, Edward Dougherty. As a paramedic and an instructor at the Philadelphia Fire Academy, Ed got into the safety, health and rescue support contracting business when a nearby refinery was looking to open up a flare line and wanted emergency medical stand-by services.

Ed showed up at the jobsite with a medical bag in hand and ready to work long hours, without any days off. Steadily, Ed grew Med-Tex’s slate of services. Dennis joined the company in 2000. Dennis strategically grew the company’s safety division while his father focused on the emergency response side. “Pretty much every service we provide today was at the request of our customers,” says Dougherty.

“The only thing that is consistent is our inconsistency. We can have a paving or plumbing company with two employees that needs help straight up to companies like Exelon.” – Dennis Dougherty

Today, the family-run company has over 150 employees and enjoys very little turnover. “A number of our folks have been part of the Med-Tex family for over 20 years,” Dougherty says.

Serving a range of workplaces

Med-Tex can be found wherever there is a job site in need of safety oversight, rescue support or training, allowing the company to work in a range of markets. “We do industrial, of course, and a lot of commercial and health care construction, but tomorrow we’re in a candy factory and then we could be in a bakery, refinery, aqueduct system, skyscraper or nuclear plant,” says Dougherty.

The company serves clients of all sizes, from a small commercial electrical contractor to a significant construction management company to a petrochemical giant. “The only thing  consistent in our client base and their needs is inconsistency. We continually need to listen, interpret and adapt to meet the needs of a very diverse group of industries and clients,” says Dougherty.

Med-Tex’s rescue services include fully trained, rapid-response rescue teams that are trained in accordance with Pennsylvania State Fire Academy Confined Space Rescue curricula by certified instructors, and in applicable OSHA rescue requirements. The company also offers confined space support, performing workplace reviews, pre-plan development and site recommendations to help ensure that clients comply with the relevant Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) standards.

The contractor also offers a full slate of training services including 10- and 30-hour OSHA training in construction or general industry, permit-required confined spaces, respiratory protection, confined space rescue training, CPR, first aid, fall protection, spill response, patient decontamination and many others.

In addition to its more traditional assignments, during the recent Ebola scare, Med-Tex worked with one of the largest health care systems in the Philadelphia region to train their medical and ancillary staff on the proper way to safely and effectively process possibly infected and highly contagious patients. “We do a lot of work in the health care industry and during the Ebola outbreak, they asked us to come in and help train people on the hands-on ways to interact with patients,” says Dougherty.

Over the years, Med-Tex has performed rescue and safety services at heights greater than 600 feet and in confined spaces as deep as 160 feet. Med-Tex self-performs nearly every role in the safety, health and rescue support contracting field. The company is also an authorized distributor, service, repair and rental partner for safety equipment manufacturer MSA, among many others.

Something brewing

In an exciting development for Dougherty, a craft beer enthusiast, Med-Tex started working with a nationally known craft brewer.

“Right now, the industry is rapidly evolving. Smaller brewers are  becoming major players and having to deal with chemicals, tanks to clean, fall protection, employee training and risk management,” says Dougherty, who has spotted OSHA violations during his own personal tours of breweries and is eager to get involved in the industry. “I’d rather be at a brewery than a refinery.”

As Med-Tex moves into the future, Dougherty is looking to further expand its work in health care and higher education and to educate clients on OSHA’s new Confined Spaces for Construction (29 CFR 1926.1200). “With the passing of this standard, there will be a push over the next few years for education, training and safety compliance,” he says.

A highly trained staff, strong relationships with industry leaders and increasing focus on safety compliance will ensure that Med-Tex Services Inc. continues to serve clients with a litany of safety, health and rescue support contracting services from its Philadelphia headquarters.