The Right Care When It Counts Awards

The Right Care When It Counts Awards recognize children and youth in Maryland who have demonstrated the proper steps to take in an emergency, or who have developed ways in which to be better prepared for emergencies when they occur.

While walking to a friend's house, Sophia Ritchie and Kai’Ree Emerson (both 12-years-old) encountered a woman calling for help. The girls ran over to find a woman cradling the head of an unconscious man. The woman instructed the girls to stay with him while she went home to get a damp cloth. Recognizing that the man was unconscious, and that his lips were turning blue, the girls immediately called 9-1-1. Sophia gave the 9-1-1 dispatcher the location and important information about the man. The two girls waited with the man until the ambulance and fire truck arrived on scene and remained on scene until the patient was transported to the hospital.

From left: State EMS Board Chair Clay B. Stamp; Captain Vincent Pyle, City of Cumberland Fire Department (accepting for Sophia Ritchie; Associate State EMS Medical Director for Pediatrics Dr. Jennifer Anders; Captain Douglas Beitzel, City of Cumberland Fire Department (accepting for Kai'Ree Emerson); EMSC Program Director Cyndy Wright-Johnson; MIEMSS Executive Director Dr. Ted Delbridge.

[Photo: MIEMSS Media Services]

For information about the 2024 Maryland EMS Awards, or to submit a nomination, click here.