History and Mission
WHO WE ARE...
The Illinois EMT Association was founded in 1975 by Firefighter/EMTs
attending Emergency Medical Services sessions at the University of Illinois annual Fire College and was incorporated as a
not-for-profit corporation under Illinois law. Internal Revenue Service approval was obtained as a tax-exempt organization
under Section 501(c)6 as a professional organization.
The IEMTA is governed by a Board of Directors. Sixteen
members are elected from eight geographical regions of the State, with two members coming from each region, serving two year
terms and being elected on a staggered basis. The membership chooses the Directors through elections held at the Annual
Meeting every spring; the Directors elect a President, Vice President, Secretary and Treasurer from their midst.
Much of our revenue is generated by Membership Dues; the
balance comes from profits on educational conferences, classes, seminars and fundraisers.
WHAT WE DO...
Since its inception, the IEMTA has focused its attention
and energies in three primary areas of service. The first of these has been to improve laws and regulations applicable
to EMS in Illinois, and to keep our members - and all providers in the state - informed of rules, regulations and laws that
are under consideration for change. These efforts have included conferring with the Illinois Department of Public Health
to negotiate policy changes, designating members to serve as participants in meetings of State planning bodies and offering
testimony before committees of the State Legislature. While not always successful in achieving the change(s) we proposed,
several important revisions or additions to Illinois EMS law have resulted directly from the actions of the IEMTA. Among
the most significant of these were the inclusion of National Registry reciprocity in the State EMS Act, changes in Good
Samaritan
Law language and the approval of the EMT-Intermediate level.
The second major area of concentration has been a focus
on quality education for EMS personnel. Each year we plan our annual meeting and seminar with an eye to providing a
useful learning experience for the attendees, and structure it in such a way to afford the maximum possible number of continuing
education hours; this event has always been well attended and received. The Luann Acuncius Excellence in EMS Education
Award is presented by the Association each year at the seminar, an affirmation of our commitment in this area. An
annual fall Instructor's Seminar was also a popular staple of the Association for a number of years; a casualty of scheduling,
it has been absent in the immediate past and will hopefully resume this year.
The IEMTA also, over the last several years, worked in
conjunction with IDPH to facilitate the "Roll-Outs" of the revised EMT-B, I and P curricula to the Illinois EMS community.
Our final primary goal has been in the area of communication,
information sharing and networking. This has traditionally been accomplished primarily through our seminars and our
quarterly newspaper, The IEMTA Monitor, which is mailed to every member of the Association and distributed
through various medical agencies. Limited use of the web site began approximately five years ago, with the fully expanded
site going into operation this year. An on-line or e-mailed version of the
Monitor is being
explored for the convenience of the members.
We have also sought to address this goal via extensive
networking with other agencies and organizations. The IEMTA maintains working relationships with a number of these,
including the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH), the National Association of Emergency Medical Technicians (NAEMT)
and Illinois Emergency Medical Services for Children (IEMSC); we value and constantly try to expand these relationships. Networking
with other bodies is important to the Association, and to this end strategic alliances with organizations such as the Illinois
Medical Emergency Response Team (IMERT), the Save a Life Foundation (SALF), the Illinois Emergency Services Management Association
(IESMA) and the American Red Cross (ARC) are being developed. The IEMTA has embraced one of the most valuable of the
9/11 lessons: that we are ALL public safety,
ALL need to understand one another
and ALL need to work together for the common good, although our missions and responsibilities may vary
slightly. The Association also recognizes full well that effective relationships are best formed and mutual understandings
reached before a crisis arises, and we are working hard towards that end.
ABOUT OUR NAME...
Old habits die hard, and established identities are never
easily parted with. We've been the IEMTA since 1975, and have opted to keep the name for that reason - even though it
is somewhat misleading today. The concept of an "all EMT" organization passed into obsolescence some time ago, when
the Association began to welcome as Active Members individuals licensed by the IDPH in ANY recognized
EMS classification...so, despite the name, the membership of the Association today includes:
First Responders
EMT Basics
EMT Intermediates
EMT Paramedics
EMS Lead Instructors
Field Registered Nurses
Trauma Nurse Specialists
Emergency Medical Dispatchers
Emergency Communications Registered
Nurses
When you take into account that our membership contains
representatives from each of these categories you find that we are a truly diverse group of EMS providers and associated persons,
groups, businesses and institutions.