ACEP announces National EMS Week 2000
Smithsonian to display artifacts from TV show Emergency

American College of Emergency Physicians Press Release

DALLAS, Texas — The American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP) today announced that Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Week 2000 will be celebrated
throughout the nation May 14-20. 

This year's theme, "EMS: New Century, New Hope," speaks to the difference EMS providers have made in America's communities in the last century, and the countless ways they will continue to ensure the nation's health, protection, and physical well-being into the next century.

"National EMS Week honors the lifesaving care that approximately 750,000 EMS
providers offer nationwide, 24-hours-a-day, seven days a week,"said Michael
T. Rapp, MD, president of ACEP. "EMS Week 2000 is an opportunity to recognize EMS contributions of the past and build upon them for a safer tomorrow."

ACEP is the organizational sponsor of the annual campaign, along with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). Throughout EMS week,
state and local activities will be held honoring EMS providers (paramedics,
emergency medical technicians, first responders, fire fighters, and the
police). EMS providers also will educate the public about injury prevention,
safety awareness, and medical emergencies. 

Each year, ACEP develops and distributes EMS Week planning kits to help communities plan and promote activities for the week. Kits are distributed to hospital emergency departments, state EMS offices, fire departments, EMS services, and the 53 ACEP chapters. This year's EMS Week 2000 corporate sponsors Medtronic Physio-Control, EMS Magazine, and Journal of EMS, are
joined by four new sponsors: Wyeth-Ayerst, ZOLL Medical Corporation,
Gatorade, and Bayer.

This year's kit contains a new fact sheet on Project 51. This is a campaign to restore the original Squad 51 from the television series EMERGENCY! and fully equip it with the original medical equipment and wardrobe used in the television series. It will then be taken to several national events for viewing. 

One of the events includes a ceremony on May 16 at the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History in Washington, DC. Artifacts from the show, donated by Universal Studios, will be on permanent display at the museum. Three of the stars of EMERGENCY!, Randolph Mantooth, Kevin Tighe, and Robert Fuller have agreed to be involved in many of the planned events. 

For an up-to-date schedule of all Project 51 events, visit the web site at www.squad51.org.

"ACEP is proud to be a sponsor of Project 51, highlighting the significant role the television series EMERGENCY! played in raising public awareness of emergency care and promoting the early history and development of modern EMS," said Dr. Rapp. "The television show made the term "paramedic" a household word and helped accelerate the evolution of trauma and emergency care in the United States. This project reminds us of an important time in history, as well as how far we've come."

The EMS Week kit also contains a report from EMS Week 1999, highlighting the local and national activities celebrated during last year's Silver Anniversary of EMS Week, as well as sample press releases and media advisories, and clip art. The kit also contains a millenium poster, sponsored by Medtronic Physio-Control and NHTSA, and educational fact sheets, which can be copied and distributed at EMS Week activities, and a new brochure from Medtronic Physio-Control titled "Heart Safe Communities."

Another new fact sheet in the EMS Week Kit describes a new form available to
parents and caregivers of children with special health care needs. Developed by
ACEP and the American Academy of Pediatrics, the form is designed to make sure vital information about a child's medical condition is available in an emergency. It contains information about critical actions to avoid, life-saving maneuvers or interventions, and allergies and medications/foods to avoid and is available on the web sites www.acep.org and www.aap.org.

Other fact sheets in the kit address the following topics:

• Domestic Violence...The Silent Plague (from ACEP).
• Teens and Firearm Violence...A Rising Epidemic (from the American Academy of Pediatrics).
• Farm Safety (from ACEP).
• Safe Communities (from NHTSA).
• EMS Fact Sheet (from ACEP).
• Tips to Beat the Heat (from Gatorade).
• Traveler's Tips and First Aid Kit (from ACEP).
• History of the Ambulance (from ACEP).
• Project 51 (from ACEP).

EMS Week 2000 is sponsored by ACEP along with EMS Week partners who provide
information for the kits and distribute them to their members. The American College of Osteopathic Emergency Physicians and the National Volunteer Fire Council are new sponsors joining the American Academy of Pediatrics, American Ambulance Association, Congressional Fire Services Institute, Emergency Medical Services for Children Program, Emergency Nurses Association, International Association of Fire Chiefs, International Association of Fire Fighters, National Association of State Emergency Medical Services Directors, National Association of EMS Educators, National Association of Emergency Medical Technicians, National Association of EMS Physicians, National Council of State EMS Training Coordinators, Inc., and the U.S. Fire Administration.

For more information or to obtain an EMS Week kit, please call 1-800-798-1822, touch 6, or visit ACEP's EMS Week web site at www.acep.org/emsweek/emsweek.htm (e-mail: emsweek@acep.org). 

EMS Week kits can also be obtained from state EMS offices or any EMS Week partner organizations.

ACEP is a national emergency medicine medical specialty society with more than 21,000 members. ACEP is committed to improving the quality of emergency care through continuing education, research, and public education. Headquartered in Dallas, Texas, ACEP has 53 chapters representing each state, as well as Puerto Rico and the District of Columbia, and a Government Services Chapter representing emergency physicians employed by military branches and other government agencies.

Copyright © 2000 The Kentucky EMS Connection. All rights reserved. News stories may be copyrighted by another organization. Original material may be reproduced provided source is credited.