EMS leaders have long known that what we do is a high-stress occupation. However, the drastically increasing number of suicides within our workforce compels leaders to shine a bright light into the dark corners of our caregivers’ souls and directly upon our profession’s apathy. According to the Firefighter Behavioral Health Alliance, nearly 600 EMS and […]
In a perfect world, EMS leaders would be the perfect source of inspiration—saying the right thing at exactly the right time. But that doesn’t always happen. Managing a paramedic service is chaotic. People—caregivers, supervisors, customers and everyone in between—are unpredictable. Situations escalate, and in the heat of the moment it’s easy to let something not […]
Many terms, designations, labels and names are used throughout the EMS profession. Does it matter? What’s in a name? From the beginning there has been confusion and debate about what to call our agencies and people. Words matter; what we call ourselves matters too. Years ago, when arriving as the new director in St. Louis, […]
The magnitude of what’s in store for EMS organizations in the next few years is coming to light. New operational approaches, service delivery methods and payment models, along with other government policy changes, present substantial risk to the way EMS agencies operate, plan cash flow and receive reimbursement. When considering opportunities such as moving into […]
The director of a medium-sized service in the Northeast told me a few weeks ago that “I just want some control. It feels like I’m constantly crashing into the rocks instead of being the rock for my team.” Reasons for chaos We are living and leading in a chaotic world. In EMS, the pressure takes […]
There has been a lot of “buzz” about community paramedicine in recent months. Everyone’s talking about it. Professional associations and individual organizations are trying to figure it out. It’s a hot topic at upcoming Pinnacle 2013 EMS Leadership & Management Conference and will be at the 2014 EMS Today Conference & Exposition to be sure. […]
How does an EMS leader keep perspective when bad things happen? The very first thing to ask: Compared to all of the things that have happened, are happening, and could happen in my leadership role, how bad is this? Is it something that will impact the rest of my career? Is it temporary? Although the pain may not feel temporary, it usually is. It’s important to get perspective.
If the “S” in EMS stands for service, then we all need to be reminded that service is built on relationships. It involves relationships between caregivers and patients, caregivers and medical directors, and administrators and coworkers. Relationships at the national level between EMS advocacy groups have been problematic in the past decade. Multiple federal agencies […]
Leadership lessons for a new service delivery model There are clear indications that things will be different for EMS as U.S. healthcare moves toward accountable-care organizations (ACOs) and other innovative delivery models. Regardless of the election results this fall, some form of healthcare reform is looming. EMS is clearly moving toward a future with higher […]
Are you taking the right actions to prepare for the future? There’s no doubt that EMS will look different a decade from now. There will be new system models, new government regulations, new reimbursement approaches and an explosion of data and new technologies with which to cope. EMS is also facing a major transition due […]
Jay Fitch, PhD is the founding partner of the EMS public safety consulting firm, Fitch & Associates. He leads multiple consulting projects each year, regularly writes and lectures on leadership and serves as the program chair for the Pinnacle Leadership Conference.
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