Louisville's Dr. Timothy Price named EMS Medical Director of the Year - The Courier-Journal

Louisville’s Dr. Timothy Price named EMS Medical Director of the Year – The Courier-Journal

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Louisville emergency medicine leader Dr. Timothy Price was named EMS Medical Director of the Year by the National Association of Emergency Medical Technicians, the Courier-Journal reported on Thursday.

For 30 years, Price has served as the medical director for Anchorage Middletown Fire & EMS, creating treatment protocols, training providers, and reviewing medical runs while also teaching emergency medicine at the University of Louisville School of Medicine.

“You probably cannot look in any region of this state without seeing some impact of his work and his investments over the last three decades,” Dr. Jeremy Thomas, who chairs UofL’s department of emergency medicine, told the Courier-Journal.

Price graduated from the UofL School of Medicine in 1988 and began his work in emergency medical services while on active duty at Fort Knox. After leaving military service in 1993, he returned to Louisville to complete a residency in emergency medicine.

Over the past three decades, he has watched field treatments evolve to incorporate advanced hospital-grade technology. Yet teaching and mentoring have remained central to his daily work.

“These people are caring, and they’re doing this because they really care and want to do good, and yet, we humans are imperfect,” Price told the Courier-Journal, noting that he reminds crews to be easier on themselves. “Sometimes we don’t make perfect choices. … I like to say that to strive for perfection is to guarantee failure, but our goal is high quality and continually improving.”

Price also established UofL’s EMS Fellowship, a program that helps physicians earn board certification in emergency medical services. Fellows spend a year training alongside Price, other physicians, and local emergency crews to master program management and community care standards.

“If you look around Northern Kentucky, virtually every EMS medical director either trained under him or has worked alongside him during their tenure in EMS,” Thomas told the outlet.

In a letter nominating Price for the national honor, UofL Department of Emergency Medicine Executive Director Ashlee Melendez wrote that Price “exemplifies the highest standards of excellence in emergency medical services.” AMFEMS Chief Pat Walsh similarly praised the recognition as a meaningful acknowledgment of a career dedicated to advancing pre-hospital care.

“His dedication has strengthened the care our community receives and supported generations of EMS professionals in their service to others,” Walsh told the Courier-Journal. “As a department, we are grateful for his leadership and proud to see a lifetime of service honored in this way.”

Thomas credited Price with transforming a local volunteer fire department into one of the largest pre-hospital care units in Kentucky. For his part, Price pointed to the camaraderie and the unsolicited compliments on department services as the driving force behind his decades of service.

“Feeling like a member of this community is rewarding,” Price told the Courier-Journal. “I hope I can keep doing it for a while.”

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