he is also ems coordinator at a hospital in connecticut. without further adieu, i would like to welcome peter cannon. hi, peter. hang on, i think -- let me see. there we go. >> thank you very much. >> thank you for attending. can you talk about your new book "killing season". >> "killing season" is a book that just came out. it is about my experiences as a paramedic over the last 25 years in following the opioid epidemic. as i will get through in my presentation, i will tell you when i started to learn things in the course of my work, and i wanted to bring my experiences and the voices of my patients so they could be changed in the way i was changed in my view. >> thank you very much. i'm looking forward to seeing your presentation. i know our audience is as well. peter is going to share his screen and go ahead with the presentation. i will be with all of you in the chat. we will come back to audience questions during the second half of the event. >> okay. can you see that okay? >> yeah, we can see your screen. >> all right. let's see here.

in addition to being paramedic he is the ems coordinator another john dempsey hospital in farmington, confident. i'd like to welcome peter canning. hi, peter -- hang on. one second. there you go. >> greets to everybody. >> thank you for joining us. before we get started with your presentation would would you you tell us about "killing season." >> "killing season" is a book here just came out and it's about my experiences as a paramedic over the last 25 years and following the opioid epidemic. i'll tell you i started to learn things in the course of my work, and i wanted to bring my experiences and the voices of my patients to other read sores they could be changed in a way i was changed in my view about the opioid epidemic. >> i'm look forward to seeing your springs know your audience is as well. so here's going to share his screen and i'll be with you the chat and then we'll come back to audience questions during the second half of the event. >> okay, can you see that okay? >> yes. we can see your screen. >> all right. let's see here. >> this is a picture of hartford where i work. i'

i am also the ems coordinator at the hospital so part of my job is reviewing forms for other paramedicsew years back, i encountered this, when a paramedic does a call, they write a narrative describing what happened. upon arrival, a 24-year-old male unresponsive lying on the floor of his bedroom with his mother performing cpr on him. he states she last saw him alive an hour ago and found him on the floor unconscious before calling 911. she states he has a history of heroin abuse and there was a used needle sitting next to him. he's unresponsive no pulse and not breathing. what struck me about this was not that it's a horrible thing, a mother doing cpr on her child which is a horrible thing but it wasn't unusual. it wasn't the first time i have ran across this and i had been on several calls that were similar. i began to look around and go, what is happening? what is it about these tragedies that are so commonplace? looking to find out what was going on, there were two stories. both the national story that i described in my book, the national story gone wrong. the opioid epidemic started

before hee found his place as a medic that in addition to being paramedic he's the ems coordinator at uconn health john tansey hospital in farmington connecticut. without further ado i would like to welcome peter canning. hang on. i think let me see, one second. there you go. >> thank you for the wonderful introduction and greetings to everybody. thanks for attending. >> thank you so much for joining us. before we get started with your presentation would you tell usia little y bit about "killing season" for those who might not be familiar? >> so "killing season" is the book you're just came out and it's about my experiences as a paramedic over the last 25 years in following the opioid epidemic as i would get to in my presentation, i will tell you i started to run in the course of my work. i wanted to bring my experiences and the voices of my patients to other readers so they can be changed in a way that i was changed, in my view about the opioid epidemic. >> awesome, thank you so much. i'm looking for to seeing a presentation i know our audience is as well so peter will share his scre

in addition to being a paramedic i'm the ems coordinator another john dempsey hospital and part of theernoon isreviewing fomenters from other paramedics am few years back i encountered this one. the paramedic does a call and fill in details and then write a narrative describing what happened. i'll read it to you. upon arrival found the 24-year-old male unresponsive lying on the floor or his bedroom with his mother performing cpr on him. he state -- she states she last saw him alive an hour ago and then found him northeastern unconscious before calling 9-1-1. her states he has history of heroin abuse and there's a used needle next to him his unresponsive and he is not breathing. so what struck me about this was not that it's a horrible thing, mother doing cpr on their child, which is a horrible thing, but that this wasn't unusual. this this wasn't the first time i'd run across a narrative like dismiss i mishad been on several cals that were similar and i began to look around and say what is happening? what has come about that these tragedies are so commonplace? so, in looking to find ou

not enough money to mak scebl a there is a lack of regional ems plans to coordinate services. >> a lacks has a direct impact on the life expectancy of these rural residents. >> reporter: based on washington, d.c., the executive director of the national rural health association. >> since 1980, while we have seen increased life expectancy among urban population, we are seeing declining and not having access to timely ems services has a direct impact on your chances of survival. >> reporter: compounding the problem is the fact that 39 states, wyoming among them, do not designate ambulance service as essential, which means government support available to other essential services like police and fire services are not available for ambulances. >> we are viewed not as health care providers, but as transportation providers. we're not just an expensive taxi. we deliver life-saving skills. i have criticaar paramedics that do miraculous things. >> reporter: the stress is coming as aging baby boomers need them most. nearly one-third of the nation's rural medical services were found to be in immedia

we have to coordinate ems services, in a sense oversee transfers, although we don't do that directly. this is all preventable, largely preventable. our hospital icus are filled with covid patients. most patients, between 85 and 90% are not vaccinated or fully vaccinated. and we feel like we wouldn't be in that situation if only we could do a better job getting people vaccinated. >> there have been different ways people tried to send a message within your state. i mean, the governor has singled out the unvaccinated as well. is there anything that's working? take winston county, only 20% are vaccinated, anything other than dead bodies around somebody's family, has anything else worked? >> you know, chuck, there are a lot of reasons people haven't gotten vaccinated, and there are still people with access problems, people susceptible to misinformation. we have people making partisan political choices in spite of the facts, but we have seen alabamaians improve vaccinations, past month and a half been personally touched, knowing a family member or friend that's effected, that motivated them

ems blog street watch. graduate of thehe iowa writers workshop he has worked many jobs in his life a taxidriver meatpacker line cook and author before he found his place as a paramedic also the emf coordinator so without further ado i like to welcome peter. >> thank you for that introduction. >> thank you for joining us but before we get started tell us about killing season for those who may not be familiar with your new book it is a book here in my experiences as a paramedic following the opioid aid epidemic out to you i started to learn things with the course of my work and i wanted to bring the voices of a patients to other readers so they could be changed in the way that i was changed in my view. >> i'mno looking forward to seeing your presentation i will be with all of you in the chat and then we'll come back to the second half of the event. >> . >> this is a picture where i work in hartford and then there over 25 years this is a picture i particularly love this is a a picture of me in 1995 and then a couple of years ago. and national drug overdose death it was over 10000 and has skyrocketed and since then estimating 65000 people i just read today with the 12 month period ending last a