Some 55 years ago during the height of the Vietnam War and fresh off the completion of the Accidental Death and Disability: The Neglected Disease of Modern Society, the seminal “white paper” that birthed American emergency medical services, Pittsburgh, PA, became the proving grounds for what EMS was to become.
The links (a radio interview, video and book) provide the story of the 23 men and women who were to become the nations first “paramedics.” While theirs is a story filled with firsts, such as the first documented field Intubation, the first field defibrillation and the first use of Narcan in the field for an overdose, all of these skills are common place in the realm of EMS today.
What makes this story inspiring is not that they were trained to do these skills and when asked were able to do them successfully. What is truly inspiring is that these brave men and women, under the tutelage of Dr. Pete Safar (The father of CPR), Dr. Phil Hallen and Dr. Nancy Caroline, were willing to be the first to step up and serve their communities through prehospital medicine, now known as emergency medical services. In a time where America was tearing itself apart with the war in Vietnam and the civil rights movement, facing an insurmountable task these brave individuals chose to put their efforts into serving their community.
Bringing a sense of pride and dignity to the community as their rallied around and welcomed the Freedom House Ambulance program. These men and women chose to take the ultimate risk and forge into the unknown. It was their dedication and motivation to service that has become the precious core values of the EMS profession today.
More on Freedom House