January 15, 1972 may be the most important day in the history of EMS when it comes to public relations. On that day, the first episode of Emergency! aired. Telling the story of firefighter/paramedics John Gage and Roy Desoto, the show dealt with their day to day challenges which, while they had a touch of “Hollywood drama” in them, were stunningly realistic.
The show depicted the pair responding to everything from routine and sometimes comical medical calls to huge fires and disasters. You got to see them working with the doctors and nurses at Rampart General Hospital and the other firefighters at Station 51. I first saw the show in 1999, and I honestly cannot think of any television show prior to that or since that more accurately showed the lives of paramedics.
Emergency! ran for 7 seasons with 131 episodes aired. That may seem like a lot of material to come up with to some, but those of us who work in the field know that if nothing else, EMS gives us an almost limitless pool for stories sad, touching, funny and exciting alike to share.
Happy 40th birthday, Emergency! You were able to accomplish something that no one has been able to do since.