Honoring EMS Professionals with Essential Resources for Preparedness and Response
Topic:
Celebrating EMS Week 2025 (May 18-24, 2025)
Emergency Medical Services (EMS) professionals are the backbone of our nation's emergency response system. Every day, they answer the call—providing life-saving care during disasters, public health emergencies, and everyday medical emergencies. Their dedication and resilience ensure that communities across the country receive timely, high-quality emergency care when it matters most.
Committed to equipping EMS providers with the knowledge and tools they need to prepare for and respond to complex medical emergencies, the Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response (ASPR) offers a variety of resources through ASPR TRACIE (Technical Resources, Assistance Center, and Information Exchange). Whether dealing with mass casualty incidents, infectious disease outbreaks, or disaster response coordination, EMS personnel can rely on ASPR TRACIE's guidance to enhance preparedness, improve coordination, and ensure responder safety.
EMS Infectious Disease Playbook (Our Most Accessed EMS Resource)
The EMS Infectious Disease Playbook is an essential guide for EMS professionals handling patients with known or suspected infectious diseases. It provides step-by-step guidance on patient assessment, transport procedures, infection control, and coordination with public health agencies. As infectious disease threats continue to evolve, this playbook serves as a crucial tool for EMS personnel to ensure both patient and provider safety.
Additional EMS Resources from ASPR TRACIE
EMS Resource Page – A central hub featuring a variety of Topic Collections, tip sheets, and webinars, including:
Pre-Hospital Mass Casualty Triage and Trauma Care Topic Collection – Strategies for triage, trauma care, and response coordination during mass casualty incidents.
Pre-Hospital Topic Collection – Best practices for integrating EMS into hospital and healthcare system preparedness efforts.
Mass Violence/Active Shooter Incidents: EMS Considerations: Components healthcare system planners should review when creating no-notice plans (e.g., community-wide patient distribution and resource considerations).
Disaster Behavioral Health Resources – Information to help EMS providers address psychological first aid, mental health considerations, and resilience for both disaster survivors and responders.
To explore these resources and more, visit ASPR TRACIE-developed Resources.
Thanking Our EMS Heroes
This EMS Week, we extend our deepest gratitude to all EMS professionals for their unwavering commitment to protecting health and saving lives. An efficient, caring, high-quality EMS system is crucial to ensuring care during any emergency and we are grateful for all of the work you do during disasters and public health emergencies and every day.
ASPR TRACIE was created to meet the information and technical assistance needs of regional ASPR staff, healthcare coalitions, healthcare entities, healthcare providers, emergency managers, public health practitioners, and others working in disaster medicine, healthcare system preparedness, and public health emergency preparedness.
