National EMS Week 2024

May 19-25, 2024, is the 50th annual National EMS Week.

In 1974, President Gerald Ford authorized EMS Week to celebrate EMS practitioners and the important work they do in our nation's communities. NAEMT partners with the American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP) to lead annual EMS Week activities. Together, NAEMT and ACEP are working to ensure that the important contributions of EMS practitioners in safeguarding the health, safety, and well-being of their communities are fully celebrated and recognized.

This year's theme is “Honoring Our Past. Forging Our Future.” As EMS.gov says, this theme “reminds us to acknowledge the foundational work of those who came before us while also striving to build and lead the EMS system we envision for our future. In the 50 years since we’ve been celebrating EMS Week, our profession has made enormous strides in pre-hospital care, data collection, emergency management, and community-based healthcare. We’ve developed comprehensive EMS systems that are ready for any kind of emergency–seven days a week, 24 hours a day–whether or not that includes going to the hospital."

EMS Week brings together local communities and medical personnel to honor the dedication of those who provide the day-to-day lifesaving services of medicine's "front line."  Whether celebrated with a company cookout or a catered lunch, an open house, an awards ceremony, or even a quiet reflection about what it means to be an EMS practitioner, EMS Week is the perfect time to recognize EMS and all that its practitioners do for our nation.

Text courtesy of  NAEMT