Memorial Day

I spent the bulk of Memorial Day on the road this year, returning to Buffalo from New Hampshire. The unwavering expanse of Interstate 90 didn't offer much in the way of visual stimulation, but it gave me time to reflect. Not far from my ruminations this year was the confluence of Memorial Day and the recently-concluded EMS Week. Memorial Day is a national holiday and deservedly holds the country's attention. EMS Week, however, commands a much lower profile.

There are numerous reasons for this disparity--not the least of them longevity--but EMS Week deserves higher visibility and observance than it currently receives. Area hospitals will hold a cookout in honor of EMS providers, and usually provide them with a small gift, but that is largely the extent of the observation of the week. The sentiment is appreciated, but at the same time it bears strong traces of damning with faint praise.

During my ride time yesterday, I was stopped in a diner by a patron who thanked my preceptor and me "for being there." We thanked her and continued on, but I was struck by the encounter. In the nearly six years I've been doing this job, I can count on one hand the number of times something like this has happened to me. As Kelly Grayson points out, EMS providers aren't in it for the money or the glory. All the same, I simply cannot figure out why the public is not more invested in recognizing EMS even this one week a year.