COASTAL ORGANIZATIONAL RESEARCH and LEARNING STRATEGIES LLC
(772) 934-4467 | DrP@coralsllc.com
Help Shape the Future of the EMS Workforce in North Carolina
A statewide research study on what keeps EMS professionals in the field, conducted by Drs. Mamie Todaro and Michelle Preiksaitis and sponsored by CORALS LLC. Please consider participating in this Emergency Medical Services retention study. You are eligible if you:
- are 18 years of age or older;
- hold a current EMT, AEMT, or Paramedic / EMT-P credential in North Carolina; and
- are currently employed (not a volunteer) by a North Carolina EMS system that responds to 911 calls, provides interfacility transport, or both.
Your answers to this 10–15 minute survey will help us understand what keeps EMS professionals in the field and what factors relate to the decision to leave. There are no right or wrong answers; we want your honest experience. The risks of this study are no greater than those encountered in daily life.
Your answers are anonymous and cannot be traced to you. Once you submit, your responses become a permanent part of the study and cannot be removed. Results will be reported only in aggregate and may be shared with EMS agency leadership and the public through publications, presentations, or a de-identified public dataset. Your responses cannot be tied to any specific agency or organization. (Full informed consent information appears when you open the survey (see link below the video.)
This study is approved by the CORALS LLC Institutional Review Board (#STRATA-PROG-002EMSRPI-090826). Questions about the study can be directed to Dr. Mamie Todaro, Dr. Michelle Preiksaitis, or to the CORALS LLC IRB.
Below, Dr. Mamie Todaro gives a brief overview of the study. AI disclosure: This video was generated using artificial intelligence from Dr. Todaro’s own photograph and voice, with her consent, and includes closed captions. The script was written by the research team, and the narration accurately describes the study. A full transcript appears below the video.
Click this box to open the video transcript.
I’m Dr. Mamie Todaro, a human resources professor and EMS provider. Thank you for taking a few minutes to participate in this research study. This project is a statewide study of EMS professionals in North Carolina examining how rewards, opportunities for promotion, and other workplace factors may relate to EMS professionals’ intent to stay in the profession. This study is not being done on behalf of any EMS in North Carolina, and data will be aggregated among all survey-takers and not attributed to one particular EMS. We will not share any individual records with EMS owners or management, and only combined data through findings and results will be shared. Your participation is completely voluntary, and the survey is 100% anonymous. No personally identifying information will be collected, and your individual responses will not be used to identify you. The survey should take approximately 10–15 minutes to complete. Your participation will provide valuable information about the experiences of EMS professionals across North Carolina and may contribute to a better understanding of factors that influence retention within the EMS workforce. I am conducting this study as a personal, professional, and academic research project. My sponsoring company, CORALS LLC, is paying for the study and will help with any dissemination of results. However, no commercial use of the study data will be used, except to validate and understand how the survey instrumentation turnover intention works. Thank you for your time and for your service to EMS.
**(Not part of the video transcript). Clarification: No study data will be used for commercial purposes. Combined results will help validate a new CORALS survey instrument for future studies and consulting work.**
Optional Follow-Up Interviews
We are also seeking EMS professionals willing to take part in a short, 30-45-minute, audio-recorded, confidential interview about their experiences. Interview sign-up uses a separate form, and the information you provide there is not linked to survey responses. You do not need to take the survey to volunteer for an interview. Interviews will occur from November 1 through January 30. If you are not contacted before January 30, 2027, then we have enough volunteers to fill the slots (and we thank you).
Previous CORALS LLC Research
You can find our research in C’JAR and C’IR, along with the research of our clients, colleagues, and the CORALS’ family of authors.
You can view research published in other scholarly journals at Dr. P’s ORCID and Google Scholar sites.
Research Inquiries
For collaboration interest or future study participation:
drp@coralsllc.com