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EMS Week 2014  EMS: Dedicated For Life

In 1973, President Gerald Ford authorized EMS Week to celebrate EMS, its practitioners and the important work they do responding to medical emergencies. Coming on the heels of Congress passing the Emergency Medical Services Systems Act, the first EMS Week celebrations were held when EMS was a fledgling industry. EMS practitioners were only beginning to emerge as a critical component of emergency medicine, the public health safety net and in helping to safeguard the health and wellbeing of communities.

A lot has changed over the last four decades. EMS is now recognized for its role in saving lives from sudden cardiac arrest and trauma; in getting people to the hospitals best equipped to treat heart attacks and strokes; and in setting the stage for a positive care experience – not just through medical skill, but by showing caring and compassion to patients in scary, distressing situations.

Then, as now, was a time of great change in EMS. Today, healthcare reform and the Affordable Care Act are fueling innovations and a shift in the way that medical care is paid for – changes that pose challenges and opportunities for EMS. With the continued development of alternate EMS delivery models such as Mobile Integrated Healthcare and Community Paramedicine, hospitals and health insurers are increasingly looking to EMS to take on additional responsibilities in filling gaps in healthcare in communities throughout the United States.

With so much in flux, there is no better moment to celebrate how far EMS has come, to remind our community about the vital work of EMS practitioners, and to lay plans for where EMS wants to go in the future.

The Ocean Pines Volunteer Fire Department thanks and honors our EMS providers for being there for our community, 24/7.  We want to encourage everyone this EMS Week to take the time to learn or sign up for a CPR Class.  Contact our department at 410-641-8272 to enroll in a lifesaving class!