"Ambulance Driver"

[Todd Laracuenta]

Copy of a letter sent to the Associated Press, March 21, 2007.

Dear AP:

This is in reference to an article by Estes Thompson, which was released today, regarding the lost Boy Scout incident. Note the following excerpt:

"He was given IV fluids in the ambulance to help him rehydrate and told his father he wanted to sleep, said ambulance driver Bud Lane."

Would you refer to police officers as police car drivers? Would you say, "When the fire truck drivers arrived, people were jumping out the windows?" Of course not. Yet, the AP routinely refers to EMT crews and paramedics as "ambulance drivers."

In fact, the term "ambulance driver" is an obsolete expression from a time when ambulances were little more than stretcher-equipped hearses. Pre-hospital care has evolved since then, and modern ambulances are mobile intensive care units that carry highly trained personnel and state-of-the-art equipment.

Given this fact, it is unfair to continue to refer to modern-day EMS professionals as ambulance drivers.

It is proper to call them emergency workers, emergency medical technicians, paramedics, rescue teams, medical personnel, EMS professionals, or, if you insist on being old-fashioned, ambulance crews. I'm sure there are countless other appropriate terms. Just remember that driving is neither a major part of their curriculum, nor is it the most noteworthy aspect of the duties they perform today.

Thanks for reading.

Sincerely,
Todd A. Laracuenta
(a former NYC ambulance driver, a.k.a. EMS Paramedic)

 

[Alexakat]

Copy of a letter sent to the Associated Press, March 21, 2007.

Dear AP:

This is in reference to an article by Estes Thompson, which was released today, regarding the lost Boy Scout incident. Note the following excerpt:

"He was given IV fluids in the ambulance to help him rehydrate and told his father he wanted to sleep, said ambulance driver Bud Lane."

Would you refer to police officers as police car drivers? Would you say, "When the fire truck drivers arrived, people were jumping out the windows?" Of course not. Yet, the AP routinely refers to EMT crews and paramedics as "ambulance drivers."

In fact, the term "ambulance driver" is an obsolete expression from a time when ambulances were little more than stretcher-equipped hearses. Pre-hospital care has evolved since then, and modern ambulances are mobile intensive care units that carry highly trained personnel and state-of-the-art equipment.

Given this fact, it is unfair to continue to refer to modern-day EMS professionals as ambulance drivers.

It is proper to call them emergency workers, emergency medical technicians, paramedics, rescue teams, medical personnel, EMS professionals, or, if you insist on being old-fashioned, ambulance crews. I'm sure there are countless other appropriate terms. Just remember that driving is neither a major part of their curriculum, nor is it the most noteworthy aspect of the duties they perform today.

Thanks for reading.

Sincerely,
Todd A. Laracuenta
(a former NYC ambulance driver, a.k.a. EMS Paramedic)

AWESOME! Well said!

 

[girlmedic]

Very well said!! Great Job....let us know if you get a response from the ap.

Keeley

 

[Epi-do]

Awesome! I would love to see any responses to this. Very well stated.

 

[Medic's Wife]

Maybe we should start referring to news anchors as teleprompter readers

 

[mrdell4150]

This could be a little something extra that I add to my history class research paper on the developtment of EMS.

 

[Stevo]

I've been called it many times , and I'm not insulted by the term ambulance driver...

and that's because there is no intent to demean what i'm doing by those that are saying this to me

get over it

~S~

 

[Flight-LP]

I've been called it many times , and I'm not insulted by the term ambulance driver...

and that's because there is no intent to demean what i'm doing by those that are saying this to me

get over it

~S~

Agreed! There are far worse issues in this biz................

A publicly created title isn't one of them. Brush it off, move on..........

 

[firecoins]

I think its time that the EMS industry hire a PR agent and put on a marketing campaign. The Milk industry does it. The meat industry does it. Even the military advertises. I live in NY. Can I possibly use an army that isn't the US army? Anyway we need to educate the public.

 

[Ridryder911]

I think its time that the EMS industry hire a PR agent and put on a marketing campaign. The Milk industry does it. The meat industry does it. Even the military advertises. I live in NY. Can I possibly use an army that isn't the US army? Anyway we need to educate the public.

Great idea !!! I'll send you the bill !!......

R/r 911

 

[firecoins]

Great idea !!! I'll send you the bill !!......

R/r 911

go ahead My address is 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, Washington D.C.

 

[firecoins]

I have choosen to use the Canadian Army from this point on.

 

[Airwaygoddess]

The bottom line, the kid got good care and that is all that matters.
EMS is still a young creature compared to the fire service.

 

[TKO]

Ambulance Driver is still annoying when you want people to realize that you do a lot more than that. Being treated like a glorified taxi makes me want to educate a few of my patients with the back of my hand.

But worse than "ambulance driver" is being called a STRETCHER FETCHER!

 

[fm_emt]

I think its time that the EMS industry hire a PR agent and put on a marketing campaign. The Milk industry does it. The meat industry does it. Even the military advertises. I live in NY. Can I possibly use an army that isn't the US army? Anyway we need to educate the public.

We should already have one.. somewhere at the NAEMT headquarters...

<b>THEY</b> oughta be doing some sort of public awareness campaign.

I actually can't remember being called an ambulance driver in recent days. The media usually just calls us all "paramedics."

 

[firecoins]

either we are all paramedics or we are all ambulance drivers. I would rather be the medic.

 

[Ridryder911]

I've had been called worst than a ambulance dirver.. (I've had two ex wives)

 

[Jon]

Good job... I'd like to hear any response.

 

[fm_emt]

I've had been called worst than a ambulance dirver.. (I've had two ex wives)

HAD two ex wives?

Oh jeez.. what did you do with them, Rid?

 

[Tincanfireman]

But worse than "ambulance driver" is being called a STRETCHER FETCHER!

Around here, they don't call us "stretcher fetcher", they call us firefighters . But in all honesty, you know what? It doesn't bother me, because it's not really ill-intentioned. I've been taken to task for calling police officers/sheriff's deputies "cops" (if you can believe that) and I give back as good as I get. The public will always and forevermore use generic terms like "cop", "ambulance driver", and "fireman" to describe us, whether we like it or not. It's not that they don't respect us or value our service; it's just not something they spend a lot of time thinking about. We could mount a million dollar publicity campaign that went on for years, and they'd still call us the same thing. If you crunch numbers for a living, in my book you're an accountant, even though your job title is probably a lot longer and more involved. I have a lot of respect (and pity ) for a person who does that for a living, but they're still an accountant. In my book, the whole subject of what the public calls us is much ado about not a whole lot...