EMS Week

 Good morning.

 This week is the 50^th annual EMS Week.  EMS, for those who may not know, is the acronym for Emergency Medical Services.  There has been some form of emergency medical services since at least the 1800’s; however, the modern service we know now began to come into its own some 50 years ago with the passing into law of the EMS Systems Act of 1973.  That law provided funding for the creation of more than 300 EMS systems across the nation, as well as set aside funding for future planning and growth.  It was during this time that as EMS was establishing a stable foothold in the nation, emergency medicine began to establish itself as a distinct specialty.  EMS has continued to evolve over the past half century into a core critical sub specialty of emergency medicine.

According to one of the websites dedicated to EMS week, this week is set aside to (quote) “recognize the 50th anniversary of the first National EMS Week.  The quote continues,  “We honor those who came before us, especially those who challenged the status quo and raised the bar for all of us.  And at the same time, we look forward, building on their efforts and committing ourselves to forge a future for the next generation of EMS professionals to serve their communities.”  (Unquote)

The smock I am wearing today fits somewhat more tightly than it did some 30 or so years ago.  Either it has shrunk or I have grown.  And, of course, my time for active service has long passed.  No longer can I jump out of bed in the middle of the night when the pager goes off, dress, run to my vehicle and get to the ambulance garage within five minutes.  I haven’t kept up with the advances in emergency medicine over the past 20 or so years.  My training is somewhat more fuzzy now than it used to be.  And I just no longer have the energy…or the desire…to pull all-nighters…then go to work the next day.

Just like others in the service, I’ve seen things and done things that most other folks would just as soon not think about.  And because my service was in a small town in a small county in Kansas, I knew most of the people I was summoned to serve.  Lives turned upside down in a matter of minutes or even seconds.  Families suffering together in grief.  Children who no longer had a parent.  Some of my memories are very vivid.  Others, not so much anymore.  And because I also worked at the hospital where we took most of our patients, I also saw them there as they received the intervention they needed.

I’ll not go into the specifics of those memories here.  I usually reserve them for some kind of special occasion or in order to make a point during one of my teaching times at the church.  Although many memories fade over time, and the exactness of those memories changes somewhat, many are vivid enough even now that I believe I could re-tell them and tell them pretty much as they happened.

EMS has come a long way from the 1800’s, and even from the early days of the modern EMS system in the late 1960’s and the 70’s.  Many women and men have given much time, resources, and energy to the development and implementation of a modern pre-hospital medical care system.  Governments have poured billions of dollars into equipment, training, policy, procedure, and human resources.

Untold thousands of individuals have taken the training and have worked or now work on either a volunteer or paid basis to provide care to those in need.  Volunteer services, by the way, are the backbone of many smaller communities, mainly in rural areas.  And although the need is great, the number of people willing to take the training, pass the boards, and give of their time and energy is decreasing…sometimes to the point that pre-hospital care in those areas is unavailable or a great distance away.

One doesn’t need any kind of medical background in order to receive the training and instruction needed to become an EMT or Paramedic.  One just needs a desire to serve, compassion for those in need, and the physical ability to do the work.

I can tell you as a former EMT that the work is demanding, rewarding, sometimes mentally and emotionally exhausting, and satisfying.  If you know someone who works in pre-hospital care either as a volunteer or as a vocation, let them know you appreciate their service.  And understand that you never should take EMS services for granted or assume that an ambulance will always be available for you or a loved one.  In some locations, EMS is in a precarious position…in danger of going away entirely or becoming much more difficult to support.  Budget cuts, lack of volunteers, relatively low pay, and other factors are choking off good pre-hospital care in some areas.  In some places, there are few or no hospitals for ambulances to take their patients.

Just be aware.  Know what is happening in the pre-hospital care system.  And celebrate, along with us, EMS this week.

 Blessings.