By Seth Hawkins
NewsObserver
BURKE COUNTY, N.C. — My friend Joey Autrey died in the line of duty on April 26. He was 38 and a paramedic. I served as his physician medical director.
He was driving a patient to the hospital when his own aorta – the blood vessel from the heart that feeds the entire body – suddenly ruptured. His only statement to his partner was that she might need help lifting their patient at the hospital. It was only when she looked into the driver compartment and saw Joey’s face that she knew something was horribly wrong.
But this story is not really about Joey’s death: It’s about the life he chose, along with other EMS personnel nationwide. Joey never looked for accolades. He cared for patients because he cared for his neighbors, and they were one and the same.
Full story: The severely undervalued EMS worker in NC