These are the trying, true stories of the mobile emergency medical technicians who often are the only thing standing between any one of us and death. Author Pat Ivey uses her extensive firsthand experiences, as well as an unflinching eye for drama and detail, to bring us the unheard tales of heroism and courage of the EMT units. She takes us into a hidden world of children in need, women seeking shelter from the storm of abuse, and the realities of industrial accidents. A simple car crash turns into a Herculean effort, an epic struggle against the clock and against the odds.  Tragic misfortunes that usually occur silently in everyday America and the men and women who try to heal these heart‑pounding predicaments are put reverently on stage in this heroic, honest, and compassionate compilation of true action adventures.

A cardiac technician takes you to the front lines of emergency medicine—from tragic car accidents to gunshot wounds—in this “fast-moving� memoir (Booklist). This book takes the reader to the front lines of medicine, from a serious automobile accident on a dark country road to a woman in cardiac arrest to a young man with near‑fatal gunshot wounds. For these patients and countless others, treatment cannot wait until they are wheeled into a distant emergency room. If lives are to be salvaged, care must begin with the life‑saving skills of Emergency Medical Technicians. “I could never work on a rescue squad,� is a statement the author has heard over and over throughout her years of squad service and readily admits it once described her own feelings. “If I can do it, so can you,� is her response to those whose fear and self‑doubt hold them back. “Anything is possible.� EMT: Beyond the Lights and Sirens is more than a personal account of Pat Ivey’s rescue squad experiences. It is a story of courage and hope and letting go of past losses. It is a book for anyone who has ever struggled to go beyond who they are. Step aboard the ambulance. Witness the tender moments amidst tragedy. Experience the joy and the anguish, and share the tears and laughter of volunteer rescue squad personnel who respond around the clock to the cries of others. In this heartwarming and compelling book, Pat Ivey takes the reader beyond the lights and sirens on a journey they will never forget.