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American Sirens : The Incredible Story of the Black Men Who Became America's First Paramedics by Kevin Hazzard (2022, Hardcover)
AlibrisBooks (455244)
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About this product
Product Identifiers
PublisherGrand Central Publishing
ISBN-100306926075
ISBN-139780306926075
eBay Product ID (ePID)5057253276
Product Key Features
Number of Pages336 Pages
LanguageEnglish
Publication NameAmerican Sirens : the Incredible Story of the Black Men Who Became America's First Paramedics
Publication Year2022
SubjectPublic Health, United States / 20th Century, History, Ethnic Studies / African American Studies
TypeTextbook
AuthorKevin Hazzard
Subject AreaSocial Science, Medical, History
FormatHardcover
Dimensions
Item Height1.4 in
Item Weight18.9 Oz
Item Length9.3 in
Item Width6.4 in
Additional Product Features
Intended AudienceTrade
LCCN2022-006917
Reviews"In a quintessentially American story that reads like a novel, Kevin Hazzard crafts an amazing story of an Austrian immigrant, an unlikely group of Black men, and a minority community in Pittsburgh who transformed paramedic and ambulance care throughout the United States . . . This heart-warming story is not just Black history, but American history, and every American truly owes the medics of Freedom House a debt of gratitude." -- Gretchen Sorin, Author of Driving While Black: African American Travel and the Road to Civil Rights, "Journalist and former paramedic Kevin Hazzard paints a vivid picture of the nation's first EMS service....His book succeeds in recalling long-overlooked events. It's a medical and human drama that will make readers appreciate the courage of the first paramedics, the foresight of a physician not content to restrict emergency medicine to other doctors and the artistry of modern EMS workers. It's also a narrative bristling with the indignities of racism and medical ignorance. Hazzard's subjects defied and overcame prejudice but also were often overwhelmed by both.... American Sirens isn't a book you're likely to forget."-- The Washington Post, "A work that a reads like a novel. Hazzard relates how a group of African American visionaries, most of whom had been trapped in menial jobs, saw what health-policy experts did not . . . After their new discipline proved its value in saving lives, organized emergency care, like so many arenas in US medicine, excluded the Black men who invented it and effaced the history of what all Americans owe them, but this riveting page-turner brings these medical heroes long-delayed acclaim." -- Harriet Washington, NBCC Award Winning Author of Medical Apartheid: The Dark History of Medical Experimentation on Black Americans from Colonial Times to the Present, "In this brilliant narrative, Kevin Hazzard leads us on a tour through the history of jazz, baseball, and the misnamed "urban renewal," to set the stage for Freedom House, a Pittsburgh ambulance service staffed by Black men, that birthed the emergency medical services we all rely on today."-- Julie Holland, MD, bestselling author of Weekends at Bellevue: Nine Years on the Night Shift at the Psych ER, "If readers have ever wondered about the history of paramedicine and how it can transform lives (paramedic and patient alike) look no further than this wonderful, enlightening work by former paramedic [Kevin] Hazzard.... Through extensive research and interviews, the author successfully incorporates the checkered history of paramedicine with the racial and social history of the mid-20th century. Furthermore, he engages the reader with the personal stories of all those involved in the development of the new system. Hazzard has fashioned an exceptional work about radical changes in health care and the importance of community in dark times."-- Library Journal, "An amazing book: a forgotten story about real life health care heroes inseparable from the ongoing tragedy of racism in America. Kevin Hazzard has performed a national service by writing American Sirens ."-- Theresa Brown, RN, New York Times bestselling author of The Shift: One Nurse, Twelve Hours, Four Patients' Lives
Dewey Edition23
Dewey Decimal362.18808996074886
SynopsisThe extraordinary story of an unjustly forgotten group of Black men in Pittsburgh who became the first paramedics in America, saving lives and changing the course of emergency medicine around the world Until the 1970s, if you suffered a medical crisis, your chances of survival were minimal. A 9-1-1 call might bring police or even the local funeral home. But that all changed with Freedom House EMS in Pittsburgh, a group of Black men who became America's first paramedics and set the gold standard for emergency medicine around the world, only to have their story and their legacy erased--until now. In American Sirens, acclaimed journalist and paramedic Kevin Hazzard tells the dramatic story of how a group of young, undereducated Black men forged a new frontier of healthcare. He follows a rich cast of characters that includes John Moon, an orphan who found his calling as a paramedic; Peter Safar, the Nobel Prize-nominated physician who invented CPR and realized his vision for a trained ambulance service; and Nancy Caroline, the idealistic young doctor who turned a scrappy team into an international leader. At every turn, Freedom House battled racism--from the community, the police, and the government. Their job was grueling, the rules made up as they went along, their mandate nearly impossible--and yet despite the long odds and fierce opposition, they succeeded spectacularly. Never-before revealed in full, this is a rich and troubling hidden history of the Black origins of America's paramedics, a special band of dedicated essential workers, who stand ready to serve day and night on the line between life and death for every one of us., Until the 1970s, if you suffered a medical crisis, your chances of survival were minimal. A 9-1-1 call might bring police or even the local funeral home. But that all changed with Freedom House EMS in Pittsburgh, a group of Black men who became America's first paramedics and set the gold standard for emergency medicine around the world, only to have their story and their legacy erased-until now.In American Sirens, acclaimed journalist and paramedic Kevin Hazzard tells the dramatic story of how a group of young, undereducated Black men forged a new frontier of healthcare. He follows a rich cast of characters that includes John Moon, an orphan who found his calling as a paramedic; Peter Safar, the Nobel Prize-nominated physician who invented CPR and realized his vision for a trained ambulance service; and Nancy Caroline, the idealistic young doctor who turned a scrappy team into an international leader. At every turn, Freedom House battled racism-from the community, the police, and the government. Their job was gruelling, the rules made up as they went along, their mandate nearly impossible-and yet despite the long odds and fierce opposition, they succeeded spectacularly. Never-before revealed in full, this is a rich and troubling hidden history of the Black origins of America's paramedics, a special band of dedicated essential workers, who stand ready to serve day and night on the line between life and death for every one of us.
LC Classification NumberRA645.6.P4H39 2022
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Ratings and reviews
Most relevant reviews
- 18 Sep, 2024
A true story of the 60’s which you’ve never heard of!
Kevin Hazzard is a gifted writer, who himself served as a paramedic for many years, and he tells a very compelling story about the founding of the paramedic movement. It is a story that I, like most people, had never heard about, that starts is the late 1960’s and is emblematic of its’ times. It reads like a memoir of the major players involved. I found it interesting and well worth my time.Verified purchase: YesCondition: Pre-owned
- 07 Jan, 2023
A IMPORTANT STORY FEW KNOW ABOUT!
Not many people know about the “Freedom House” paramedics in Pittsburgh, PA from 1967 to 1975. I heard about them when the author was interviewed on NPR. They were trailblazers in the paramedic field and saved many lives. A book well worth reading!Verified purchase: YesCondition: New
- 30 Apr, 2023
The beginning of Advanced EMS services innAmerica.
Great history book on Para medicine in this country, as told from a personal review.Verified purchase: YesCondition: Pre-owned
- 29 Apr, 2025
One of the best books I've ever read! Pu...
One of the best books I've ever read! Put it on the shelf (or table) next to The Grapes of Wrath, The Color Purple, Black Boy...Verified purchase: YesCondition: Pre-owned
- 13 Jul, 2023
History
Awesome history lesson of the first paramedics in America!Verified purchase: YesCondition: Pre-owned
