In this installment I wanted to take a moment and reflect on an even greater overlooked aspect of EMS.

The First Responder.

Now when I mention that phrase many different interpretations can be assumed. Is it the EMT squad? The Paramedic in the Fly car ? Or…

To me when I say first responder it can certainly be any trained EMS professional. But I want to focus on the providers who may not be as highly trained. Meaning the local Volunteer First Aid squad, Police Officer or Firefighter.

When I refer to being highly trained I mean those EMS professionals who have a certification of EMT or above and who perform those duties in the field as their primary vocation.

Most times the First Responder is trained as a major incident action taker. Such as performing CPR, using the AED and stopping major bleeding. They are more often than not the first person(s) on the scene and await the arrival of more advanced care resources.

So, what happens to them when not everything is done for the patient or perhaps a blood pressure is misread? They are berated by the advanced care providers when they arrive. They become looked upon as more of a hindrance than a help.

However, we as the more highly trained and experienced providers must remember that the basic First Responder is not at our level of care. Nor do they have the day to day experiences that we as a full time EMS providers may have.

Most of them wanted to be a police officer or firefighter not an EMS provider and the volunteer squad is just that “volunteer”. They are awakened from sleep, interrupted from their job or family and then they respond. They respond willingly and without hesitation and expect to perform the life and death actions they have been trained for. Not the nuances of the everyday EMS provider, i.e. abdominal pains, fevers and other exciting parts of the EMS professional.

My goal and yours should be this. Be thankful for the First Responder. While they may not be trained like you or have the desire to perform EMS duties, they are on scene.

They have given oxygen to the chest pain or respiratory distress patient and helped them survive until you arrived with nitroglycerin or albuterol.

They started CPR and maintained the hope of the family for their loved one until you could intubate and gain IV access for more advanced medications to be given.

They where first on scene of the choking child and cleared the child’s airway within the first few minutes of the 911 call. Leaving you to transport a crying child rather than an intubated unresponsive one.

Let’s face it, most arrival times from the initial 911 call by advanced EMS care resources are between 8-10 minutes – sometimes much longer. That’s a long time for someone to see their family or friend suffering. The First Responder lessens that time and helps us as the advanced team to do our job better in the end.

Show your appreciation next time you encounter them. Even if they just get the demographics for your patient or help move them to the ambulance, it helps you focus more on what you are trained for, patient care.

A simple “thanks for coming out” or “good compressions” can go a long way. Just think how you feel when a patient or family member says “thank you” after a call. Sometimes that’s all you need to make your day rewarding.