"I remember how I was treated by the other providers on scene when my dad passed away. Even though I wasn’t part of their family, I was in that moment. I wanted other families to feel the same way."
Paramedic discovers her passion through heartbreak
At just 14 years old, Amanda Barker faced a life-altering moment that would shape her future.
At that young age was the first time she performed cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) on a person. That person was her father.
Despite her best efforts, he didn’t survive. However, the profound experience and the compassion shown by the emergency medical services (EMS) providers that day inspired her career choice.
“I remember how I was treated by the other providers on scene when my dad passed away,” Barker recalls. “Even though I wasn’t part of their family, I was in that moment. I wanted other families to feel the same way, and that’s a big part of what a paramedic does.”
The realities of life in EMS
With 20 years in EMS, Barker is now a nationally registered paramedic with specialized certifications in critical care and community paramedicine. She works across rural and urban settings between New York and Pennsylvania, serving in hospital-based and 911-based systems.
She notes that the public often misunderstands the true nature of paramedic work, largely due to Hollywood’s dramatized portrayals.
“Everyone thinks it’s lights and sirens, going 70 miles an hour, and saving the world,” Barker explains. “The reality is it’s a lot of social work, developing rapport with your patients, and looking for underlying conditions.”
Training students to help alleviate the paramedic shortage
Amid a national shortage of EMS practitioners, Barker dedicates herself to educating the next generation of paramedics. Her training extends beyond the classroom, taking students and newly credentialed providers on real-life emergency calls.
During these hands-on sessions, she emphasizes the numerous challenges paramedics face, including the constant barrage of noise — from the ambulance engine and sirens, to family members seeking information.
To combat this, Barker relies on the Eko CORE 500™ Digital Stethoscope, which she praises for its noise cancelling capabilities and its revolutionary impact on paramedic training.
Discovering the best stethoscope for EMTs
Barker gifted herself the CORE 500™ for Christmas, transitioning from the 3M™ Littmann® CORE Digital Stethoscope, which she passed on to her significant other, a firefighter/EMT. The new model’s advanced noise cancelling technology and its integration with digital tools have transformed her teaching approach.
During her training years, Barker learned lung sounds from a scratched CD. Now, with the Eko CORE 500™, students can use Bluetooth headphones to listen to actual patient sounds, while Barker hears exactly what they hear.
“We can be treating a patient together and hearing the same things,” she says. “I can point out things they may not notice. For some students, it’s their first time listening to lung sounds, so it’s extremely helpful.”
The digital stethoscope’s full-color display and the Eko App on her cell phone allow Barker to show patients’ vitals during treatment. This shared listening experience enables students to truly grasp the impact of their care.
“You can hear the difference you’ve made in a patient’s lungs,” Barker explains. “You can see that you’ve made a difference, and it brings the whole picture together. It’s great when students have that lightbulb moment. This is why we do all of this.”
Discover more about the noise cancelling function on the CORE 500™ and how it reduces unwanted background noise.
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