Uniting to Thank and Support EMS Clinicians

On EMS for Children (EMSC) Day, May 24, as part of National EMS Week, EMSC Program grantees and dozens of national partners united to draw special attention to prehospital clinicians’ commitment to acutely ill and injured children.

National EMS Week, which is hosted by the American College of Emergency Physicians and the National Association of Emergency Medical Technicians (NAEMT), was established in 1971 to recognize the work of EMS clinicians. Special theme days of EMS Week structure the week’s activities: In 2001, Wednesday was designated as EMSC Day, creating an annual opportunity to spotlight prehospital care for children and the work of the federal EMSC Program.

The EMSC Program kicked off the day with the release of a video thanking EMS clinicians for their commitment to kids. The video featured EMSC Program leadership, grantees, and partners, including Texas’ EMSC Family Advisory Network representative Lisa Treleaven and her adorable daughter, June. The video has been viewed more than 1,000 times and was shared by numerous organizations and partners, ranging from NAEMT to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

Later that evening, the EMSC Innovation & Improvement Center hosted a webinar for EMS clinicians, "The Pediatric Emergency Care Coordinator (PECC): Where Emergency Care for Kids Begins,” which offered free CE credit through Prodigy EMS. More than 400 individuals attended the event.

The webinar helped attendees understand the role of prehospital PECCs and ways PECCs improve pediatric readiness. It also introduced strategies for supporting PECCs, particularly through the EMSC Program’s Targeted Issues grants. Three of the five Targeted Issues Grants currently focus on prehospital PECCs.

The webinar speakers included:

• Kathleen Adelgais, MD, MPH/MSPH, EMSC Innovation & Improvement Center Prehospital Co-Lead and Project Director for Colorado EMSC, of the University of Colorado
• Mark Cicero, MD, MPH, EMSC Targeted Issues Principal Investigator, Connecticut EMSC Co-Medical Director, and Professor of Pediatrics and Emergency Medicine at Yale University
• Julianne Cyr, MPH, CPH, EMSC Targeted Issues Principal Investigator and Research Instructor in Emergency Medicine at UNC-Chapel Hill
• Maj. Robby Milton, M-PSLA, CCEMT-P, Deputy Director and Operations Manager, Burke County EMS
• Toni Gross, MD, MPH, EMSC Targeted Issues Principal Investigator and Chief of Emergency Medicine at Children’s Hospital New Orleans

In addition to national EMSC Day activities, many EMSC State Partnership Programs recognized the days within their communities – from an in-person pediatric skills-checking session hosted by EMSC Virgin Islands to two virtual learning sessions with CE organized by EMSC Maine to “driveway drills” offered by EMSC Missouri.