Blogs

Introduction Until recently cervical spine immobilization—the automatic application of a rigid cervical collar and long spine board—has been the accepted standard of care for decades. This practice is no longer recommended without question. During the past 15–20 years increasing research evidence and several important specialty consensus statements have led clinicians toward more selective spinal motion restriction (SMR)…

Across many municipalities, a growing friction has emerged between fire departments and private ambulance providers. At the heart of the problem is an uneven system of accountability: private ambulance services are tightly bound to strict response-time contracts, while public fire departments often operate under far looser obligations (AHA, 2020; RAND, 2013; Municipal contract examples/news). The…

There’s a quiet crisis unfolding in emergency medical services. Once a clearly respected trade — a blend of acute clinical skill, split-second judgment and physical courage — paramedicine is being hollowed out by indifference, penny-pinching and a culture that mistakes token gratitude for real support. The result: an essential profession that’s slipping toward obsolescence. Paid…

Source: adapted from Chapter 27, Mocking Time — How Paramedics Save Minutes, Lives and The Crisis Behind Who Will Answer The Next Emergency Call by Scott J. Ash Title: Fentanyl, Fear, and Street Medicine — A Detailed Look for the Paramedic Hive Introduction Fentanyl has altered the landscape of prehospital care. Where overdoses once followed…

What the Season Ahead Means for Paramedics and First Responders For most Americans, Memorial Day marks the unofficial beginning of summer. It is a long weekend filled with barbecues, lakes, fireworks, travel, and family gatherings. For paramedics, EMTs, firefighters, dispatchers, law enforcement officers, and emergency room staff, Memorial Day signals something else entirely: The beginning…

A Call to Elevate the Profession Every year during EMS Week, communities across the country pause to thank the men and women who answer emergency calls at every hour of the day and night. We celebrate the saves, the sacrifices, the long shifts, and the moments that never make the headlines. But gratitude alone will not…

Who Will Answer the Next Emergency Call? The tones drop at 3:17 AM Somewhere across the city, a mother is screaming that her child cannot breathe. A man clutches his chest in the middle of a casino floor. An overdose victim turns blue in a locked bathroom. A rollover accident traps an entire family beneath…

There is a growing disconnect in paramedicine—one that most providers feel but few openlyaddress. The expectations placed on paramedics today are expanding rapidly, yet the structure of theprofession remains anchored in a technical past. We are expected to think like clinicians. We are expected to act with autonomy. We are expected to manage increasingly complex,…