I am exploring the intangible aspects of emergency medical care: what lies beyond the prescribed protocol and the care of the material human body? The care that is given to the immaterial, which includes the panicked mind and frenzied emotions of the patient, is an essential component of the ambulance experience, yet it is challenging both to formalize in training and to locate in practice. This project sheds light on how patients’ emotional and relational needs are addressed by Emergency Medical Technicians (EMTs) while they are in the care of the emergency system. 

I completed my EMT training in the summer of 2024, and I was struck by the variability in the soft skills demonstrated by EMTs, such as empathy and compassion. Procedures like medication administration and splint wrapping were taught with algorithmic accuracy, yet the realm of emotional and relational care varied as much as each provider’s personality did. This was especially accentuated by my ride-alongs with the Baltimore City Fire Department, where I noticed a variety of ways that providers connected with patients to support them. I became interested in these interactions because they touch deeper philosophical ideas–are traits like compassion and empathy able to be taught? Even if they are taught in the classroom, is this education effective?

Interestingly, traits such as empathy, cultural competence, and compassion are explicitly named in the EMT education standards and textbooks. I began by analyzing this literature to understand what was expected of EMTs from their licensure programs. Though there is written recognition of these traits, in practice they are challenging to teach. As I continue to research, I am very interested in reading more firsthand accounts of EMTs in the field and their reflections about how they have addressed situations that require emotional and relational care. Generating a narrative of these experiences will be informative because there is great value in hearing these voices. I believe that the individuality of each story will add much color to the work I am doing. 

The rise of ‘holistic medicine’ has encouraged our field to consider the ways in which we may evolve medicine to be more ‘human,’ especially as the rise of artificial intelligence alters the role of expertise and medical knowledge. It appears increasingly incumbent upon medical providers to be able to provide “patient-centered” care, which requires strong interpersonal skills and the ability to connect with patients relationally and emotionally. Moreover, the concurrent development of biomedical science may sometimes encourage a reductionist approach to the human body, making this research an essential counterpoint. I hope that my project will add to the growing literature about the importance of human medicine, one that addresses us in our particularity, with all our rich emotions and experiences.