Black History: Freedom House Ambulance Services – Lays Foundation Emergency Medical Services
As Black History Month starts in February, the Black Men’s Health Clinic would like to bring a healthcare story about Freedom House Ambulance Services to light.
Initiated in 1967 and established in 1968, Freedom House Ambulance Services was the first U.S. (United States) emergency medical service with medically trained paramedics who would lay the foundations of modern-day emergency care in the healthcare industry.
Before Freedom House, the ambulance consisted of a police arrival and a ‘fast-car siren-rush’ to the hospital, that left many dying. To remedy this, 25 Black men started Freedom House Medical Services and created an innovative professional medical training program; hiring community workers who had previously suffered from long-term unemployment.
Freedom House’s new high-quality service, located in Pittsburgh, was able to assist in primarily black neighborhoods where normal services were often neglected. Their emergency services team grew and they became so renowned that many began to call them instead of the police. As the City of Pittsburgh began to incorporate these standards into their jurisdiction, Freedom House Ambulance Service became a part of a healthcare solution.
But, after about seven (7) years of providing service, Freedom House was dismantled by the City of Pittsburgh. However, this can never diminish the homage that is due to Freedom House Ambulance Services and their founders for pioneering one-of-a-kind and innovative prehospital care to help everyone in America.
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Sources:
1. Clips edited from video @SomethingBlackMade on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/reel/DARxu7jSdJ0/igsh=dnJkd3o3MjJpYWRv
2. ABOUT FREEDOM HOUSE AMBULANCE SERVICE: America’s First Paramedics Were Black. Their Achievements Were Overlooked for Decades. Arthur L. Kellermann, ER doctor, public health researcher and patient advocate. Reprinted with permission from the author. February 26, 2024. Weblink at HealthForce Center at UCSF – https://healthforce.ucsf.edu/news/americas-first-paramedics-were-black-their-achievements-were-overlooked-decades
