How to request an EMSC Day proclamation

National Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Week is quickly approaching! The week will be celebrated May 15-21 with the theme "EMS: Rising to the Challenge.” Each day of the week has a particular focus, and May 18–Wednesday–will be the annual celebration of Emergency Medical Services for Children (EMSC) Day. EMSC Day was first recognized in 2001 and places a spotlight on the importance of high-quality emergency care for children.

This year, EMSC Day will include a webinar on the theme of mental health; details and registration to be available soon. As in years past, materials like activity sheets for children, thank you cards and appreciation certificates for prehospital practitioners, and more will also be available–updated handouts will be posted to the EMS Week webpage in the coming weeks.

One way to get involved as preparations ramp up is to request an EMSC Day proclamation from your state or town. It’s a great way to raise awareness about the importance of high-quality emergency care for children in your community–and it takes just a few minutes to do. An EMSC Day proclamation template is available here.

Steps to request an EMSC Day proclamation

1. Plan ahead! Depending on the state or city, proclamation requests may need to be submitted 60 or 30 days in advance – so get started soon.
2. Download the EMSC Day proclamation.
3. Visit your state or local government’s website. Many have a specific section on requesting proclamations. Oftentimes, they even have an online form.
4. If they do not have an online form for proclamations, try to find an email address for your state or local government leadership and send the request by email with the proclamation attached.
5. Keep an eye on your inbox for a response; you may wish to follow up if you don’t hear back.
6. Celebrate and share! If your state or local government responds positively, let us know by emailing prehospital@emscimprovement.center. Your local government office may invite you to attend a meeting to accept the proclamation. This is a great opportunity to raise awareness and bring your community together to celebrate EMSC Day.

Questions or comments? Email prehospital@emscimprovement.center. Or, learn more about EMS Week and EMSC Day here.