EMS MVP Pediatric Symposium

To our many EMS partners, it’s an our to celebrate you this week. National EMS Week 2026 takes place from May 17 to May 23. The 52nd annual observance is themed “Improving Outcomes, Together”. Led by the American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP) and the National Association of Emergency Medical Technicians (NAEMT), the week honors EMTs, paramedics, and emergency personnel.

The annual week-long campaign provides a platform to celebrate the dedication of emergency medical responders, promote public safety education, and strengthen community partnerships.

A Phoenix Children’s “Mission Moment” is a special recognition for team members who go above and beyond to fulfill the hospital’s mission of advancing hope, healing, and the best healthcare for children and families. These moments can be moments of exceptional patient care, like a doctor identifying a rare condition, or instances of exceptional teamwork.

“Mission Moments” serve as a way to publicly acknowledge and honor hospital employees, such as a paramedic, nurse or doctor, for their dedication and exceptional work. They are used to highlight and celebrate individuals and their meaningful impact on patients and their tamilies.

On behalf of , I had the honor of presenting Kendal Dold this award at the recent 2025 EMS and Prehospital Care Conference.

Kendal embodies Phoenix Children’s core value of delivering exceptional care. Her clinical expertise and leadership skills ensure that our community partners have the knowledge necessary to provide life-saving treatment. Through her actions, she brings to life our mission of advancing hope, healing, and the best healthcare. It was an hono to present Kendal with this recognition for her Mission Moment and to say thank you for being such an important part of the care delivered every day at Phoenix Children’s.

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Join us for the Annual Phoenix Children’s EMS and Prehospital Care Conference on Monday, October 13, 2025 at 9:00 AM, returning to the Renaissance Phoenix Glendale Hotel & Conference Center. This premier event brings together EMS professionals, first responders and healthcare providers from across the Southwest to enhance pediatric emergency and trauma care. Accredited pediatric Continuing Education (CE) hours offered for EMTs, paramedics, and nurses. Conference attendance includes a shirt, lunch, and swag bag.

See link in bio for details, and use promo code PCH20 for 20% off. Scholarships available upon request (send us a message or email!)

The 2024 Phoenix Children’s EMS and Prehospital Care Conference was a tremendous success, bringing together over 600 attendees and 36 exhibitors for a full day of impactful education, networking, and collaboration.

Attendees have the opportunity to explore the Exhibit Hall, engage with key industry partners, and enjoy networking over lunch and breaks.

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EMS Lecture Day! Diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA) can lead to respiratory acidosis, but it’s not the direct cause. DKA primarily causes a metabolic acidosis due to the accumulation of ketone bodies in the blood. The body compensates for this metabolic acidosis by increasing the respiratory rate (Kussmaul breathing) to exhale more carbon dioxide, which can lead to respiratory alkalosis. However, in severe cases or with respiratory complications, the respiratory system may become impaired, leading to respiratory acidosis.

Here’s a more detailed explanation:
Metabolic Acidosis in DKA: DKA occurs when the body doesn’t produce enough insulin or cannot effectively use insulin, leading to high blood sugar and the breakdown of fats for energy. This process produces ketone bodies, which are acidic and cause metabolic acidosis

Want to learn more and earn accredited training pediatric CE hours? See link in bio and register today for 2025 EMS and Prehospital Care Conference on October 13, 2025. And if you are still reading, use promo code PCH20 🤫

Lecture Day! Swipe right to learn more about pediatric seizures and seizure-like mimics. when in doubt, you can always call for online medical direction and have a low threshold to treat. Want to learn more?! Pediatric seizures will be one of my dedicated pediatric lectures at the upcoming Phoenix Children’s EMS and Prehospital Care Conference on Monday, October 13, 2025 at 9:00 AM, returning to the Renaissance Phoenix Glendale Hotel & Conference Center. This premier event brings together EMS professionals, first responders and healthcare providers from across the Southwest to enhance pediatric emergency and trauma care.
See link in bio to learn more and register. Comment “promo” below for a discount code! Scholarships available for students, trainees and first responders on request.

Phoenix Children’s invites you to the 2025 EMS and Prehospital Care Conference at the Renaissance Phoenix Glendale Hotel & Spa, Monday, Oct. 13, 2025.

The conference is an educational and networking event specifically designed to provide EMS and prehospital providers the latest education on pediatric emergency and trauma care. Past participants include administrators, physicians, nurse practitioners, nurses, paramedics, firefighters, EMTs and law enforcement.

The Phoenix Children’s EMS and Prehospital Care Conference hosts over 800 attendees. Paramedics, EMTs, nurses, physicians and other healthcare professionals represented more than 100 different agencies throughout the Southwest.

CONTINUING EDUCATION ACCREDITATION: Phoenix Children’s is approved as a provider by accrediting organizations for EMT, paramedic and nursing continuing education.

VENUE: Experience the newly renovated Renaissance Phoenix Glendale Hotel & Spa. The perfect blend of modern enhancements with a regional flare. Situated in the booming Westgate Entertainment District you will find a dizzying array of amusement and attractions.
For more information, check out our EMS and Prehospital Care Conference website (link in bio)

💦👙🚑 swipe for more frequently asked questions about submersion inuries in the pre-hospital setting. Understanding high risk medical conditions for submersion iniuries is important for injury prevention, as well as potentially identifying an underlying cardiac or seizure disorder after a survivable event.

What’s the role of Vitamin A and Measles? And what is the potential harm?

The CDC states vitamin A may be administered to infants and children in the United States with measles as part of supportive management, which is consistent with AAP guidance.!

It is recommended, that under a doctor’s supervision, children infected with measles be given vitamin A once a day for two days to reduce the severity of the illness. But that is a small amount in a medical setting. The only way to prevent measles is to have your child vaccinated with the MMR vaccine.

Is too much vitamin A harmful?
Yes, large doses of vitamin A can be toxic. Too much vitamin A causes nausea, vomiting, headache, tiredness, joint and bone pain, blurry vision, skin and hair problems. It can also lead to serious problems like intracranial hypertension, liver damage and coma. If pregnant, taking large doses of vitamin A can also cause birth defects.

Why do highlight simulation training for EMS? …and what is a simbulance?

It is estimated that only 10% of Emergency Medical Services (EMS) calls involve children and only a fraction of those are true life-threatening emergencies.

A study reported that, in a busy advanced life support (ALS) service, providers averaged only 1 pediatric bag-valve-mask procedure every 1.7 years, 1 pediatric intubation every 3 years, and 1 intraosseous cannulation every 6.7 years.
Simulation has been shown to reduce errors by inexperienced providers.

Our EMS program utilizes simulation to create a safe and controlled learning environment for first responders to develop pediatric assessment and procedural skills needed in the pre-hospital setting. Although high fidelity mannequins increases the “realness,” lifting, moving and unique space considerations play a significant role in EMS care and is not realistically created in existing simulation

We built a simulation ambulance (“simbulance”) to create a more realistic EMS simulation environment with the addition of an out-of-service ambulance.

Can you recognize SEPSIS in a pediatric patient⁉️🤨

In the United States, more than 75,000 children develop severe sepsis each year. This works out to about 200 per day For and the number is increasing every year. Almost 7,000 of these children die – this is more than those who die of pediatric cancers. Sepsis in the developing world is even more serious, causing many more deaths.

Many children who survive sepsis are left with long-term problems. More than 1 in 3 children (34%) who survive experience a change in cognitive skills 🧠 still at 28 days following their discharge from the hospital. Nearly half return to the hospital at least once after surviving sepsis. Here are some more facts and statistics:

🦠As many as 8% of pediatric sepsis cases may be missed during emergency department visits. 😳

🦠Immunocompromised children and children who are require longer hospital stays are less likely to return to their previous quality of life after hospitalization than other children hospitalized for sepsis.

🦠The cost of hospitalizing children for sepsis increased almost 25% between 2005 and 2016, after adjusting for inflation.

🦠The average length of stay for sepsis patients is 31.5 days, which is nearly 8 times longer than the average stay for other childhood conditions.

🦠Children with severe sepsis or septic shock who are Black or Hispanic are more likely to die than non-Hispanic white children.