EMS Week: Honoring our past, forging our future

EMCTs of the Year – 2024
Daniel Malanowski, Central Region
Russell Smith, Northern Region
Dan Wallace, Southeastern Region
Tim Maple, Western Region

Each year, during the month of May, the Arizona Department of Health Services’ (ADHS) Bureau of Emergency Medical Services (EMS) and Trauma System observes National EMS Week to honor our EMS and trauma system providers. In recognition of the long-standing contributions of Arizona’s EMS and Trauma System community, Governor Katie Hobbs recently signed a Proclamation designating May Arizona Trauma Awareness Month, May 19-25 Emergency Medical Services Week, and May 22 EMS for Children Day.

This year’s theme is Honoring Our Past, Forging Our Future. ADHS is honoring the history of the Arizona EMS system by recognizing key milestones and is forging our future by celebrating what’s to come.

Honoring our past

The evolution of Arizona’s EMS and Trauma System has been achieved through advancement of a series of legislative, executive, and programmatic initiatives over the past 50 years.

1974 – Paramedic training was established in Arizona.
1978 – The Arizona Emergency Medical Services Council was established.
1983 – The three-digit 911 emergency telephone number system was established.
1994 – The State Trauma Advisory Board (STAB) was founded.
2005 – Arizona’s trauma center designation rules and trauma center standards were approved.
2011 – ADHS launches Arizona’s EMS registry (AZ-PIERS) to receive prehospital care data.

These initiatives have enabled Arizona’s EMS and Trauma System providers to respond to more than one million annual emergent requests, including, but not limited to:

Stroke (6,085 calls in 2022)
STEMI (2,965 calls in 2022)
Cardiac Arrest (18,965 calls in 2022)
Traumatic Injury (158,378 calls in 2022)
Substance Use Incidents (40,927 calls in 2022)
Heat-Related Illness Emergencies (3,511 calls in 2022)

Forging our future

The future of Arizona’s EMS and Trauma System is being forged by stakeholders implementing public health response and prevention initiatives including:

Naloxone Leave Behind Programs initiated by Arizona fire and EMS agencies to address the opioid crisis.
Revising Arizona’s Administrative Rules to address changes in EMS and trauma care in Arizona.
Collaborating with multiple state and federal agencies to prevent traffic-related injury and mortality.
Collaborating with stakeholders in drafting a 2025 to 2030 EMS and Trauma System Needs Assessment and Strategic Plan.
Expanding EMS and trauma system initiatives as components of Arizona’s public health system.

EMS Week-related activities

As part of EMS Week, the ADHS Bureau of EMS and Trauma System is recognizing four Emergency Medical Care Technicians (EMCTs) of the Year who went above and beyond in their service of emergent care to Arizona’s sick and injured. Congratulations to this year’s winners:

Daniel Malanowski, EMCT of the Year, Central Region
Russell Smith, EMCT of the Year, Northern Region
Dan Wallace, EMCT of the Year, Southeastern Region
Tim Maple, EMCT of the Year, Western Region

Please join us in celebrating the heroes, achievements, and important strides towards a more safe and healthy Arizona!

By Rachel Garcia|2024-05-22T14:32:18-07:00May 22nd, 2024|General, Preparedness|Comments Off

About the Author: Rachel Garcia

Rachel Garcia, MPH, MCHES is the Deputy Assistant Director of Preparedness, Chief of Emergency Medical Service (EMS) and Trauma, and Principal Investigator for the CDC Epidemiology and Laboratory Capacity (ELC) Program at the Arizona Department of Health Services. Rachel is an Arizona native and humble public servant who has served in various public health leadership roles in state and local government for more than 15 years. In her current role, she is responsible for overseeing several programs including the ADHS Bureau of EMS and Trauma System, which coordinates, establishes, and administers Arizona’s statewide system of emergency medical services, trauma care, and registry systems. She previously served as the Deputy Chief of Public Health Emergency Preparedness and Response and has assisted with multiple Health Emergency Operations Center responses at ADHS. Before joining the ADHS team, she was an Assistant Director of Public Health in Pinal county, where she oversaw Community and Correctional Health programs. She also served in multiple public health research and community outreach positions at the University of Arizona in Tucson, where she earned her Master of Public Health and Bachelor of Science degrees and completed Susan G. Komen and National Science Foundation fellowships. Rachel is a proud wife and mother of three, who is passionate about education and data-driven public health policies that can improve health for the next generations of Arizonans.