EMS (Emergency Medical Service) Vs. Medicine

If you became involved in a car accident or had a stroke in a public place, you will first be taken by the personnel of emergency medical service (EMS) and then transported via ambulance to the hospital. At hospital, doctors will examine you, assign medicines, and let you rest in the hospital beds for a while.

I. What You See on the Outside

This article is about discerning the difference between EMS and Medicine, as in medical doctors, nurses, and other hospital personnel, hoping that it can give you a sense of what these people are doing. We often degrade EMS personnel because their appearances are somewhat untidy compared to those in hospital. Doctors and nurses always show up in their fancy gowns and other nice clothing, exhibiting some sort of sophistication. In contrast, when you see someone from EMS ambulance, all you see is their town name and title EMS. Nothing fancy.

I'm here to tell you what these people are doing, and compare them to those in medical field. I also want and hope that by the time you finish reading this article, you will have more respects to all health professional personnel for saving precious lives every single day.

I volunteered in local EMS for about a period of two years until I went away to my college. The experiences at EMS are unforgettable. These people are most relaxed and nice people you will meet. Sure, you will hear swearing words now and then. But, what can you do? These people sometimes run on mountain dew and coffee with only couple hours of sleep. There have been attempts to reduce the swearing in my station. In particularly, in the kitchen, there is a can where you need to donate money for every time you swear. I don't think it was really enforced though.

II. The Inside

Behind these smiles and nice personality lie philanthropic desires to help other people. Let me tell you that whatever these people are doing, they are not doing for money. This is especially with EMTs. I know that unless you become paramedics, you cannot make that much money as EMT. Often times, I know that some EMS members work at Fire Station as well to assist in their cost of living. If they wanted to just do for money, they could have tried some other jobs. I know that several members in the station I volunteered were very good at fixing up the cars. They chose to join EMS because they wanted to help people. It's their number one purpose and goal.

They are also very tight among its members. I have found everyone to pick on each other well, and when there is a big event like Christmas or Thanksgiving, they always invite everyone to come and have a big party. They do not consider their co-workers as workers. It is more like members in the family that you can trust and rely on. It's different than common workplace atmosphere.

III. How They Do It

The trainings are intense. There are several mandatory trainings that you have to do to keep in shape for patient care. You will be surprised how rigorous these trainings are. EMS focuses not just on concepts, but actual on hands-on training. There are practices and trainings that they can do optionally to boost their skills as well. There are lessons that people can hear and sometimes, videos to watch. Also, some people like to have CPR certificate as well and possibly some other certificates.

When they hear a call and arrive on the scene, these people are often the ones who can determine if you are going to live to see your son graduate from high school or to pick up your granddaughter from elementary school. If these people are not there to do the jobs that they are doing, most patients will be dead long before coming to the hospital. Remember that if you are not breathing even for couple of minutes, you are risking your life and most likely, you will end up with some serious brain impairment even if you do survive. The EMS crew will try to minimize that by doing everything that they can. Whether it's car accident, an incident in nursing home, or an heart attack, these people will be there as promptly as possible. You might think that your job is bad, working with sinister bosses or playing with mindless children. But, imagine having no lunch break. If these people are eating lunch during their shift and hear a call, these people will be out the door before you know it. They will finish their last half of the lunch when they return, which may be anywhere from half an hour to an hour. It takes a lot of personal sacrifice from them to be able to do what they are doing now.

IV. Comparison Issues

One of the major problems with EMS and people's recognition is that most people do not see them after they arrive to the hospital. We often see doctors, nurses, physician's assistants, and other technicians more. We know that these people save our lives by surgery and meticulous diagnoses. There are no doubts on how important that they are. But, I want to assure you that EMS personnel are just as important as these doctors. It's like comparing water and sunlight for plants. You need to have BOTH in order to survive, and you cannot say which one's better and which one's worse because they are two different entities. Those people in hospitals are trained to focus on more anatomical or surgical matters. They also focus on the recovery of the patients. On the other hand, EMS focuses on keeping them alive and preventing any further negative things from occurring. Because they have different objectives, you cannot compare them as better or worse. Trying to do so is not only ignorant but unrespectable.

Then there is another issue with education. EMS personnel are sometimes just graduates of high school. On the other hands, those in hospital went to two-year institution or even medical schools (M.D.). Some even went to get Ph.D. as well. So, people naturally link importance with intelligence. Wrong! Like I said, they are two very different types of jobs. You should clearly know that if you take EMS personnel in the operating room, he won't be able to perform surgeries because he's not trained to. Similarly, if you take one of the famous doctors in the world and put him on the patient at the scene of arrival, do you honestly think that he will be able to save them immediately? He will have to be analyzing the signs, but because it's on the scene, he could be wasting time that might risk someone's life. Each occupation has a place and a role in the society. Medicine has one place and EMS has another.

V. Ending Remarks

All I recommend is this: be thankful. As human population's average age lengthens, there will be a bigger demand for personnel in medicine. The issue is that there are a lot more people and an increase in man-made diseases (i.e. some diseases that are vector-based and then become diseases within Homo sapiens with new strains). Anyone involved in the personnel deserves some respect.

I have taken four key courses (General Biology I, II; Organic Chemistry I, II) for medical school prerequisites. I am also very familiar with the medical school applications, and what the medical schools are like. But, I also know what it is like as a member of EMS. They may be vastly different on what they do, but at the end of the day, they all want the people to live better and be safe.

They will look differently. They will have different interests and have personalities that can be at the opposite ends. But, do these differences matter? No.

All these people, EMS and medical personnel in hospitals, want to help everyone, and I think that the least that person can do is to be thankful for them. If you happen to see the person who took you in ambulance, stop by and say thank you. If you see a doctor who safely conducted surgery for your relative and meets him or her on the grocery store, stop and say thank you. That's all it takes. They love what they are doing, but it really will mean a lot for them to hear appreciation from you.