Prodigy EMS

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09/01/2026

🎬 This is NOT a Taigman’s Top Tip!

We thought the finale was the finale… but there was just too much material left on the cutting-room floor.

So, as one final bonus installment, we present the Taigman’s Top Tips — T3 Blooper & Gag Reel.

And in the interests of full disclosure, most of the bloopers belong to Rob, not Mike. Rob is, however, prepared to sacrifice his professional dignity in the interests of entertainment — and perhaps one final lesson.

Because there actually is a takeaway:

👉 It doesn’t have to be word perfect.

Sometimes you stumble over the words. Sometimes you completely lose your train of thought. Sometimes you simply have to stop, laugh, reset and go again.
What matters is perseverance.

Whether you’re leading, teaching, presenting, recording — or just trying to get one sentence out while Mike Taigman watches — keep going and try again.

The polished version is rarely the first version. And sometimes the mistakes are more entertaining anyway.

Enjoy the bits you weren’t supposed to see.

And if you want another season of Taigman’s Top Tips, give us a “YES PLEASE” in the comments 👇

For EMS education with considerably fewer outtakes, visit www.prodigyems.com

Mike Taigman FirstWatch

The Prodigy team would like to extend our most vociferous congratulations to the inimitable Ginger Locke, who has been a...
08/26/2026

The Prodigy team would like to extend our most vociferous congratulations to the inimitable Ginger Locke, who has been announced as the 2026 "Educator of the Year" by National Association of Emergency Medical Technicians EMS World - Emergency Medical Services https://www.hmpgloballearningnetwork.com/site/emsworld/feature-story/2026-national-ems-awards-excellence-recipients-announced?utm_content=384810585&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook&hss_channel=fbp-138853699489721

Of course, she's been our favorite educator for all the years we've known her.

You may wonder: what is it like to work with Ginger?

She brings compassion, calm, wit, humanity, sense, new ideas, and meaningful feedback to the work we do at Prodigy. Ginger lives by the mantra of "unconditional positive regard" and demonstrates genuine humility as a teammate and leader.
Her wisdom and commitment to excellence frequently produce loud expressions of profound gratitude in her co-workers.
Ginger just makes the world better.

We look forward to celebrating you in Orlando, Ginger!

Love, James, Rob, Hilary, Maia, Mark, Ryan, Shane, Michael, Sylvia, Ethan, Jimmy and Heather

Enjoy some photos of Ginger doing her thing, through the years...

One year ago, we released The Ones Who Stayed: The Story of New Orleans EMS During Hurricane Katrina, and it has officia...
08/26/2026

One year ago, we released The Ones Who Stayed: The Story of New Orleans EMS During Hurricane Katrina, and it has officially passed half a million views on YouTube.

A huge thank you to everyone who has watched, shared, and supported the documentary over the past year.

Most importantly, thank you to New Orleans Emergency Medical Services and everyone who trusted us to tell their story. We’re incredibly grateful to everyone who sat down with us, shared their experiences, provided footage and photos, and helped bring this project together.

08/25/2026

🏖️ Taigman’s Top Tip — The Finale

For the final Taigman’s Top Tip of the season, Mike Taigman takes us to the beach — and leaves us with one last leadership lesson.

👉 Leadership is like leaving footprints in the sand.

Walk along the beach and you leave footprints behind you. But sooner or later, another wave comes along and washes them away.

Mike’s point? Leadership works the same way.

You cannot make one great impression on your team and assume the job is done. You cannot communicate the mission once, demonstrate that you care once, recognize someone once, or have one meaningful conversation and expect the impact to last forever.

You have to keep making those footprints.

Keep showing up. Keep communicating. Keep listening. Keep connecting. Keep reinforcing the culture you want to create.

Because leadership isn’t something you did. It’s something you have to keep doing.

And after a season of Mike challenging us to rethink everything from motivation and benchmarking to emotional intelligence, curiosity, coaching, data and our place in the wider healthcare system, perhaps that’s the perfect place to finish:

👣 Keep walking. Keep making an impression. You’re never done.

That’s the final Taigman’s Top Tip — for now.

Would you like another season of Mike Taigman challenging, provoking and occasionally upsetting the conventional wisdom of EMS leadership?

Give us a “YES PLEASE” in the comments 👇

And for more EMS education, leadership and learning, visit www.prodigyems.com

FirstWatch Mike Taigman

Diabetic emergencies present as a simple number on the glucometer but get complicated fast.Jimmy Apple is a Pediatric Cr...
08/21/2026

Diabetic emergencies present as a simple number on the glucometer but get complicated fast.

Jimmy Apple is a Pediatric Critical Care Paramedic better known across EMS as the EMS Avenger, and in this class he starts with the physiology: how insulin actually moves glucose, what the pancreas and the Islets of Langerhans are doing, and how the types of diabetes differ. Jimmy discusses hypoglycemia, DKA, osmotic diuresis, and the fluid and electrolyte losses that come with them, as well as the science behind fluid, potassium, insulin, and dextrose therapy.

Take it today: https://bit.ly/45AM1YP

08/18/2026

🚑 Taigman’s Top Tip

This week, Mike Taigman takes on one of the perennial challenges of leadership:

👉 How do you motivate your people?

Mike’s answer? You probably don’t.

Ask people what motivates them and you’ll hear things like pride in doing a good job, a strong work ethic instilled by their parents, satisfaction from helping others, or positive feedback from the patients and communities they serve.

Those are examples of intrinsic motivation — and, as Mike points out, you don’t get to give someone intrinsic motivation. It comes from within.

So perhaps leaders are asking the wrong question.
Instead of asking, “How do I motivate my people?”, ask:
“What am I doing that might be demotivating them?”

Unnecessary bureaucracy. Poor communication. Micromanagement. Lack of trust. Inconsistent leadership. Processes that make it unnecessarily difficult to do a good job.

Start removing those barriers and something interesting happens: people’s natural motivation has room to emerge.

Your job as a leader isn’t necessarily to manufacture motivation. Sometimes it’s simply to stop doing the things that crush it.

That’s this week’s Taigman’s Top Tip.

Looking for more ways to develop your EMS clinicians, educators, and leaders?

👉 Visit www.prodigyems.com

Mike Taigman FirstWatch

08/11/2026

🚑 Taigman’s Top Tip

This week, Mike Taigman challenges one of the ways we traditionally think about EMS:

👉 Stop thinking of EMS as separate from the rest of healthcare.

Mike uses himself as the hypothetical patient. If he suffers an MI, his survival doesn’t depend on one great paramedic, one great ambulance crew, or one great cardiologist. It depends on an entire system working together.

It starts with public education—recognizing the symptoms and calling 911.

Then comes the call taker and potentially lifesaving pre-arrival instructions. First responders arrive, followed by an EMS crew capable of recognizing the MI, initiating treatment, and getting the patient to the right destination.

But the system doesn’t stop at the ambulance doors.

The emergency department needs to be ready. The cath lab needs to activate and rapidly restore blood flow. Critical care teams take over afterward. And eventually, somebody needs to help Mike make some longer-term changes—including, as he puts it, “eat more broccoli and less French fries.”

Every link matters.

EMS is an incredibly important part of that continuum—but we are a part of healthcare, not apart from healthcare.

For EMS leaders, educators, and clinicians, that shift in thinking matters. Our success shouldn’t simply be measured by what happens inside the ambulance. It should be measured by how effectively we contribute to the patient’s entire journey and ultimate outcome.

Think system. Think integration. Think beyond the ambulance.

That’s this week’s Taigman’s Top Tip.

Looking to develop clinicians and leaders who understand their role in the wider healthcare system?

👉 Visit www.prodigyems.com

Mike Taigman FirstWatch

New EMS Educator Podcast!"Relationships Over Spreadsheets: The Power of the Clinical Coordinator"The clinical elements o...
08/07/2026

New EMS Educator Podcast!

"Relationships Over Spreadsheets: The Power of the Clinical Coordinator"

The clinical elements of an EMS program are vast and complicated but essential. What can a clinical coordinator do to help students succeed? Hosts Maia Dorsett and Hilary Gates sit down with Michael Miller, EdD, RN, NRP, Associate Director, Committee on Accreditation of Educational Programs for the EMS Professions (CoAEMSP) and Timothy Hutchings, EMT-P, Clinical Coordinator, Monroe Community College Paramedic Program, to unpack the sometimes invisible role of the clinical coordinator. Mike presents the CoAEMSP accreditation standards and the four core clinical coordinator responsibilities, while Hutch shares hard-won, real-world strategies for building trust with students and preceptors alike. Together they explore what separates good clinical coordination from great, why matter more than spreadsheets, common barriers faced by EMS programs, and creative solutions for ensuring quality clinical placements. A must-listen for program directors, educators, and anyone coordinating experiences in education.

Ginger Locke shares the episode's key points in her "Mindset Minute."

https://youtu.be/fQvdHiMkc9I?si=1fzlPgHp01jeiKQY

The POLST on the refrigerator says comfort measures only. The family is telling you to do everything.For the family, thi...
08/05/2026

The POLST on the refrigerator says comfort measures only. The family is telling you to do everything.

For the family, this isn't a protocol decision. It's the worst day of their life, and nothing prepared them for it.

In this EMS Clinical Brief, Dr. Maia Dorsett talks with Dr. Amelia Breyre, EMS Medical Director for the City and County of San Francisco, about advance directives, health care proxies, and POLST/MOLST forms. You'll learn which documents are actionable medical orders, which aren't, and how to clarify a patient's goals before starting invasive treatments.

Take the course free for a limited time: https://bit.ly/45E7pfB

08/04/2026

🚑 Taigman’s Top Tip

This week’s insight from Mike Taigman introduces a leadership concept you may not have heard before.

Most of us are familiar with IQ—our intelligence quotient.

Many of us now recognize the importance of EQ—our emotional intelligence and ability to build relationships.

But Mike shares a lesson from one of his mentors, Maureen Bisognano, former President of the Institute for Healthcare Improvement:

👉 CQ — your Curiosity Quotient.

What if your first response to every challenge was curiosity instead of frustration?

The next time someone cuts you off in traffic…
A project goes off the rails…
A colleague makes a mistake…
Or a difficult conversation lands on your desk…

Pause and ask:

“I wonder what’s really going on here?”

Mike has discovered something powerful:

👉 It’s impossible to be curious and angry at the same time.

Curiosity slows us down. It broadens our thinking. It helps us understand rather than assume. And when we’re leading teams, it opens the door to better questions, better conversations, and better solutions.

The best leaders aren’t the ones with all the answers.

They’re the ones who stay curious long enough to find the right questions.

This week’s challenge is simple:

Choose curiosity. Your team—and your leadership—will be better for it.

Looking to build leaders who combine curiosity, emotional intelligence, and practical leadership skills?

👉 Visit www.prodigyems.com

Mike Taigman FirstWatch

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