Paramedics and EMTs have intensely stressful jobs. The intensity is in part because an EMS event occurs every second of the year!
But to top it off, Paramedics and EMTs face the threat of violence while on the job. Victims, patients and bystanders sometimes attack, injure and even kill these workers.
EMT Betty Higdon recently told her story of being attacked by a patient in the Bronx (NYC). She said he, "Grabbed my shirt, started punching my head, choking my neck until I couldn't breathe. He came out of the restraints, he grabbed my hair. So he started whipping my head back and forth."
But the attacker was charged with only a misdemeanor, not a felony. The reason is because of the way the law is written.
So New York officials have proposed a new initiative to protect Paramedics and EMTs, in the same way the law protects Police Officers. It is called The Assaults Against Paramedics and EMTs initiative.
Many Paramedics and EMTs feel the same way Betty Higdon does when she said, "I like to come to work to help people, I just want the support to do this job safely."
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