The 30 Seconds That Could Have Saved My Back

Strength in Patience. Strength in Numbers.

By Alphie Davis, Firefighter/Paramedic

Co-Founder, Emergency Medical Resolutions Inc.

There’s a moment on certain calls when you know what the smarter decision is…

but you don’t always make it.

This was one of those calls.

We were dispatched for a female patient with stroke-like symptoms. You know how those feel. Time matters. FAST exam. Check the sugar. Start thinking about transport. Your brain is already moving faster than your body.

She was in a bedroom. Tight space. Limited access. Bariatric build.

Just my partner and me inside.

To move things along, we slid a Mega Mover under her so we could transfer her from the bed to the stretcher staged outside the room. The engine was on the way, just not there yet.

And this is where the decision really happened.

We looked at each other.

That quiet understanding firefighters have.

“We’ve got this.”

I knew we could wait.

I also knew we probably wouldn’t.

Against my better judgment, we lifted.

We used decent mechanics. Braced. Counted it out.

Did everything we’re taught to do.

And I felt it immediately.

Lower back. Sharp. Familiar. The kind of pain you try to ignore because the job isn’t finished yet.

We carried her out and got her onto the stretcher safely.

And right as we secured her, the engine crew walked through the front door.

Thirty seconds.

That’s probably all it would have taken.

Thirty seconds of patience could have removed the risk completely.

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Strength in Patience

We’re wired to move fast.

We take pride in being efficient.

Capable.

Strong.

Reliable.

But sometimes strength is not about lifting more weight.

Sometimes it’s about waiting.

Waiting for the engine.

Waiting for another set of hands.

Waiting thirty seconds so your back still works thirty years from now.

In the moment, waiting feels wrong.

It feels like you’re slowing things down.

Like you’re not pulling your weight.

Like you should just handle it.

But that thinking catches up with you.

Real strength is having the discipline to pause, reassess, and choose the safer option even when you know you could power through it.

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Strength in Numbers

We understand this concept everywhere else in the fire service.

Two in, two out.

No one makes entry alone.

Technical rescues use full teams.

High risk situations demand manpower.

But when it comes to lifting patients, we forget.

We look at each other and say,

“We’ve got this.”

Even when help is seconds away. We lean into pride instead of process.

What we do not think about is cumulative strain.

Most overexertion injuries are not dramatic. They do not come from one massive event.

They come from small decisions stacked over time.

One lift you rushed.

One patient you should have waited on.

One cramped bedroom.

One awkward carry.

It adds up.

Disc by disc.

Shift by shift.

Year by year.

Strength in numbers is not just a fireground principle.

It is a longevity principle.

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The Real Risk

The patient needed rapid stroke evaluation and transport.

But here is the honest truth.

An extra thirty seconds would not have changed her outcome.

It could have changed mine.

Back injuries in EMS do not usually end your shift that day.

They stay with you.

They flare up.

They limit you.

They follow you home.

They shorten careers.

We spend countless hours training to take care of patients.

We spend far less time talking about protecting our own bodies in tight, awkward environments.

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The Hidden Variable: Pride

If I am being honest, this was not about capability.

It was pride mixed with urgency.

I knew help was almost there.

But we chose speed over sustainability.

And that is how preventable injuries happen in this profession.

Not because we do not know better.

Because we convince ourselves we can handle it.

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The Lesson

That call did not end in catastrophe.

But it could have. It reinforced something simple.

Just because you can lift something does not mean you should.

Waiting is not weakness. Calling for more help is not incompetence.

Protecting your body is protecting your career.

Real strength on scene is not about who can lift the most.

It is about who makes the right decision.

Strength in patience.

Strength in numbers.

And having the discipline to choose both.