Emergency Medical Services (EMS) May 14-20 Emergency Medical Services (EMS) May 14-20
National Center for Inury Prevention and Control

The theme of the 2006 Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Week is “EMS: Serving on Health Care’s Front Line.” This theme was chosen to remind the public that EMS personnel provide vital, lifesaving medical support to victims of sudden and serious illness or injury. The EMS system depends on the availability and coordination of its components, ranging from an informed public capable of recognizing medical emergencies to a network of trauma centers capable of providing highly specialized care. The 9-1-1 emergency number, search and rescue teams, and prehospital and emergency department personnel are critical components of the EMS system (American College of Emergency Physicians, 2002).

Throughout EMS Week, state and local activities are planned to recognize EMS providers (police, paramedics, fire fighters, first responders, and emergency medical technicians). Through CDC’s sponsorship, the American College of Emergency Physicians offers a free 2006 EMS Week Kit, including a planning guide to help communities promote activities for the week. This year, the planning guide features the Model Communities initiative sponsored by CDC’s TIIDE Project (Terrorism Injuries: Information, Dissemination, and Exchange). The Model Communities initiative identifies established relationships between the emergency care and public health communities that can effectively respond to events involving large numbers of injuries.

Learn about CDC’s Model Communities project to promote effective collaboration between EMS and public health systems.