Before the 1970s, the survival of a South Cook County resident – whether they spiked a 103-degree fever or suffered traumatic injuries – often hinged on luck.
A family member, police officer or firefighter might drive the patient to the hospital, recalled Bernard Heilicser, DO, an emergency physician at UChicago Medicine Ingalls Memorial in Harvey. Some funeral homes ran ambulance services and transported the sick in hearses.
The national need for more structured, mobile medical care led to the first Emergency Medical Services (EMS) systems in 1969. Ingalls swiftly took notice, helping to coordinate and launch the South Cook County EMS in 1973.
Ingalls is celebrating its 50th anniversary as the "resource hospital" for South Cook County EMS, with responsibility over EMS services at seven area associate hospitals.
The designation puts Ingalls in charge of educational and clinical operations. These include coordinating almost 1,400 paramedics working for 39 municipal fire departments and three private ambulance companies.
The combined efforts provide emergency care to about 1 million people in the Southland, said Heilicser, who has served as Medical Director for the South County EMS for nearly 40 years.
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This story was first published by UChicago Medicine.