EMS Week 2018 has arrived! How will your community be marking this important week? In case you haven’t started your planning yet, the IAFC has compiled a few great ideas for ways that you can celebrate EMS Week in your community:
- EMS Strong: Providing high-quality emergency medical care is an important and tough job. EMS Week is an ideal time to recognize those personnel in your fire department who have gone above and beyond to serve your community. The IAFC has partnered with a number of national fire and EMS organizations to support the EMS Strong campaign. EMS Strong recognizes the sacrifices and dedication that firefighters and EMS personnel continuously make. The EMS Strong campaign offers great ideas on ways you can recognize your EMS personnel who provide this important community service each day.
- World CPR Challenge: Do lay members of your community know how to perform hands-only CPR? Despite common misconceptions about the difficulty of CPR, early bystander intervention is one of the most effective ways to boost the odds of cardiac arrest survival. Current CPR guidelines for lay bystanders recognize that hands-only CPR is an effective early intervention. The IAFC has partnered with American Medical Response and the American College of Emergency Physicians to hold the World CPR Challenge and encourage the global fire and emergency service to host hands-only CPR training sessions in their communities. If your fire department held a training session, make sure to report your number of attendees so that we can track how many people have learned this vital skill!
- Register for FRM: Fire-Rescue Med is fast approaching! FRM 2018 will be held from June 9-13 in Henderson, Nevada. This conference is the best way for EMS leaders to build their professional networks, learn about the latest trends in EMS, and earn continuing education credit. The IAFC is offering a special promo code to honor EMS Week. Use promo code 211 when you register to receive $50 off the price of your registration. Act fast though, this offer expires on Saturday, May 26!
- Engage in Legislative Advocacy: The IAFC is supporting a variety of legislative initiatives that benefit your fire department. From grants for rural fire/EMS agencies to protecting the T-Band radio spectrum and strengthening the FIRE and SAFER grants, there is a lot on the line. Your help is needed to educate your members of Congress about what your agency does each day. Check out the IAFC Government Relations webpage to learn about these important issues and to help influence fire/EMS policy in the halls of Capitol Hill.
Chief Michael McEvoy is chair of the IAFC EMS Section.