Honoring Our Past. Forging Our Future.

Half a century ago, a presidential proclamation called on the nation to support efforts to improve emergency medical care across the country. It also established the first national EMS Week, a tradition we proudly continue today. Much has changed since 1974, yet there is still much we can learn from those trailblazing professionals who helped EMS evolve into the sophisticated branch of medicine it is today. Their dedication, commitment and sacrifice inspire us to take bold steps of our own, to continue to seek out ways to better serve our patients and our communities.

This year, we celebrate EMS Week by honoring our past—by taking a pause to recognize the contributions of each generation, the people who dreamed that we could save more lives and have less suffering, and then found ways to make it happen. EMS Week is never just about the past, however. It’s also about inspiring the EMS professionals just starting out and the young people who haven’t even discovered EMS yet. It’s about learning from the challenges and building on the successes of the last five decades. It’s about forging our future—a future in which the next generation has the tools they need to deliver compassionate care and alleviate suffering in communities everywhere.

The History of EMS Week

In 1974, President Gerald Ford authorized EMS Week to celebrate EMS professionals and the important work they do in our nation's communities. National Emergency Medical Services Week brings together local communities and medical personnel to honor the dedication of those who provide the day-to-day lifesaving services of medicine's frontline. EMS Week is presented by the American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP) in partnership with the National Associations of Emergency Medical Technicians (NAEMT). Together, NAEMT and ACEP lead annual EMS Week activities. These organizations are working to ensure that the important contributions of EMS professionals in safeguarding the health, safety and well-being of their communities are fully celebrated and recognized.

EMS is usually all about the moment. Thinking about your last patient could distract you from what’s happening to the person lying on the stretcher in front of you right now. Worrying too much about the next call isn’t too helpful, when you have no idea what it might bring. But the past holds immense lessons—whether it’s the experience of the people who train us or the struggles and triumphs from EMS’s earliest days.

This year, as we recognize the 50th anniversary of the first National EMS Week, we honor those who came before us, especially those who challenged the status quo and raised the bar for all of us. And at the same time, we look forward, building on their efforts and committing ourselves to forge a future for the next generation of EMS professionals to serve their communities.

KVFD and the Communities we serve are very proud of the service that is delivered for Emergency Medical Services. In a time of need and challenging economy, KVFD strives to do its best with Emergency Medical Services.

At KVFD we have a great team of personnel who deliver great service 24/7, 365.

From EMS Manager Miles, "Fast forward to today, we operate out of some of the state-of-the-art vehicles that can cost anywhere from $200,000-350,000 per ambulance. We have tools like battery operated stretchers, power LOADS, etc. that we can depend on that weren't around "back then". Just on the BLS level alone, we now have the capability to use CPAP, administer EPI, give nebulizer treatments, administer Narcan, check BGL's and so on. We are thankful for those who got us where we are today, and their hard work will never be forgotten".