A Kansas City firefighter-paramedic, Graham Hoffman, died this April after the patient he was transporting to the hospital stabbed him in the chest.
Since then, there has been increased local awareness about assaults against first responders — a group that includes EMTs, ambulance personnel, paramedics and law enforcement officers.
“I’ve been bit, I’ve been spit on, I’ve been cussed at, I’ve had men inappropriately grope me,” said Katee Schimming, the Kansas City Fire Department division chief. “I hate to say we normalize it, but there are risks when you get into our job.”…