A Paramedic's Reflection...

I am what people see when they request an ambulance in an emergency.
Mine are the eyes they look into when they are in pain, frightened and lonely.
My hand is the one they want to hold when they are scared...
I am the person helping their loved one...
I am whom they hear and see when they are being carried down stairs.
I am who they hear when they are loaded into the ambulance on the stretcher.
I am who they hear when I communicate with others in person or on the radio.
I am whom they hope can mend their wounds,
stop the bleeding,
help them breathe easier,
wake up an overdose or a diabetic,
make their baby breathe,
and restart a heart...
I am the angel they were waiting for.
I am who will perform a miracle...
My voice is what people hear when they ride in the ambulance.
My voice is what they hear as their destiny is being weighed and critical decisions are being made.
My voice is what the family hears as they pray and hope for a positive outcome.
Mine is the thoughtfulness,
caring and compassion that people hope they'll find when they call for help.
If I am sympathetic, so is my department.
If I am professional, so is my department.
If I am compassionate, so is my department.
My acts or omissions of duties are remembered forever...
No family member,
patient, ancillary personnel, doctor, nurse,
or other E.M.S. team member ever knows the real me.
The me that I know is there, unless I let them see it.
All they know is what I let them see, hear, and experience.
And so,
the department and the E.M.S. community has a stake in my attitude.
And the collective attitude of all the employees.
Our department and the E.M.S. system is judged by the caring we show,
the attention we pay, the courtesies we extend:
For as individuals and as a group we are The E.M.S.

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