Durham County Emergency Medical Services

11/05/2025

Today’s Well Done Wednesday nominees are Cpl. Matt Tolley and DFD Squad 4 (A Shift), nominated by AEMT Megan O’Reilly.

Cpl. Tolley, AEMT O’Reilly, EMT Aidan Brodie and the DFD squad were dispatched to a sick person at an apartment complex. The patient, who lived alone and could not walk, expressed that he was concerned about losing his home due to being unable to clean his apartment. While AEMT O’Reilly and EMT Brodie began assessment and treatment of the patient, Squad 4 and Cpl. Tolley cleaned the patient’s bathroom.

AEMT O’Reilly writes, “I really wanted to send in a thank you and shout out to Cpl. Tolley and Squad 4 A shift crew for their wonderful patient care and compassion. Our job entails helping people, not just medically, but also ensuring they have a safe and secure home. Because of their help, this patient will not have to worry about losing his home over the bathroom not being cleaned and I believe that truly shows how dedicated they are to helping the citizens of Durham.”

11/05/2025

NOTICE OF BILLING SYSTEM UPGRADE

Durham County EMS’s billing partner, EMSMC, is currently upgrading to a new and improved billing system. During this transition, the system will be unavailable until the upgrade is complete. We anticipate this process will continue through November 9. During this period, Durham County EMS and EMSMC will not be able to access nor update accounts, or generate billing records.

If you need to make a payment, have questions about your bill, or would like to check your balance, please contact EMSMC directly at 877-930-0746 on or after Monday, November 10, 2025.

We sincerely appreciate your patience and understanding as we work to enhance our billing services for our community. Thank you.

11/03/2025

11/03/2025

Today is Save Sunday, where we recognize the medics, AEMTs and EMTs who were involved in cardiac arrests with sustained ROSC (return of spontaneous circulation) during the previous week(s). Great job!

10/31/2025

Check out the Durham County Office of Emergency Services Annual Report!

10/30/2025

Good Halloween safety tips from our friends at DFD!

Did you know that children are twice as likely to be injured while walking on Halloween than any other day of the year?

Let's take a moment to think about walking safely and driving safely tomorrow evening while the kids are trick-or-treating.

WALKERS: Carry glow sticks or flashlights, use reflective tape or stickers on costumes and bags, and wear light colors to help kids see and be seen by drivers. Make sure you are crossing the street at corners or crosswalks.

DRIVERS: Slow down and be alert! Kids are excited on Halloween and may dart into the street. Turn on headlights early in the day to spot kids from further away.

Have a Happy Halloween!

10/29/2025

Today is Well Done Wednesday, where we spotlight exceptional work by our paramedics, AEMTs and EMTs. This week’s honorees are Paramedics Adrian Glover and Montay Smith, who went on a bit of a modern-day Odyssey at a recent event standby.

While on standby for a charity 5K, Paramedic Glover was approached by a male who stated that he needed assistance because he could not remember where he had parked his vehicle after a long night at a local bar. The individual explained that he was not from the area, had no nearby friends, and had also lost both his phone and his keys. Paramedics Glover and Smith immediately took action.

The individual was able to access his Find My iPhone account, which showed that his phone was located less than half a mile from their position. Paramedic Smith proceeded to the location where the phone pinged, while Paramedic Glover remained with the individual in the back of the ambulance. During that time, Paramedic Glover contacted the man’s family and coordinated arrangements for his safe transport back home.

Although they were unable to recover his phone or keys, the situation concluded successfully, and the individual was able to return home safely. Note: Wool E. Bull was not the individual in question, but merely posed for this photo.

10/27/2025

Cpl. Jacob Boothe's toddler daughter, Olivia, loves playing with her dad's patches and uniforms. So for this Halloween, Jacob and his wife Katlyn decided to make her her very own DCEMS getup, with a custom t-shirt, miniature tactical pants, and a toy radio and stethoscope. Junior EMT Boothe might have to call for lifting assistance a few more times than your average employee, but she makes up for it with her pure adorableness!

(Note to field providers: after about ten years in EMS, all new recruits will begin to look like this to you.)

10/23/2025

Last week, Durham County EMS hosted a Basic Field Training Officer course. Eight of our providers attended and graduated this course.

From left:

Lt. Max Patterson (instructor)
Paramedic Seth Lynch
Paramedic Nizar Bejaoui
Paramedic Brianne Vasarhelyi
Paramedic Greta Leitz-Najarian
AEMT Bryan Gibbons
Paramedic Kira Chambers
Paramedic Drake Cogley
EMT Nicholas Desjardin
Capt. Sara Houston (instructor)

Completing the Basic FTO course is the first step towards training the next generation of DCEMS paramedics, AEMTs and EMTs. Congratulations to everyone!

10/22/2025

Today is Well Done Wednesday, where we spotlight exceptional work by our paramedics, AEMTs and EMTs. This week’s honoree is EMT Kaz Moore, nominated by their partner, Paramedic Drake Cogley.

Kaz and Drake were dispatched to a call that ended up being a diabetic emergency. Following assessment, the crew determined that the patient and family were having this emergency due to lack of access to adequate food because of the government shutdown. The patient was diabetic and had only eaten one meal a day for the past few days.

Once the patient became alert and oriented, the patient declined transport to the hospital. Kaz then realized that the family would not have access to adequate food for over a week and took it upon themselves to order the family some food and paid for it out of their own pocket. The family was also given resources for food banks in the county, and they were very grateful to Kaz for helping them. Incredible job Kaz!