Wake County Emergency Medical Services

What Wake County Emergency Medical Services does

Wake County Emergency Medical Services is a county-government department within Wake County, North Carolina, that delivers 24/7 pre-hospital emergency medical response, ambulance transport, and clinical care across the county's jurisdiction of approximately 1.1 million residents. The agency operates from its headquarters at 331 S. McDowell Street in Raleigh and is staffed by roughly 110 EMS personnel who respond through the 911 dispatch system. It is funded through public tax revenue rather than direct patient billing.

The agency's core technology consists of clinical protocols and field procedures rather than software platforms. Its flagship capability is the PreHospital Hypothermia (I.C.E.) Protocol — currently at v3.1 — for induced cooling of cardiac arrest patients, supported by pocket clinical checklists, SAEM-presentation materials documenting a four-fold increase in survival rates, and a handoff protocol aligned with WakeMed's hospital-side continuation of care. Additional proprietary protocols include the Active Shooter Protocol with dedicated tactical medical equipment, and participation in the North Carolina Ambulance Strike Team (NCAST), a coordinated major-event response asset developed in cooperation with the North Carolina Office of EMS.

The business model is that of a publicly funded government service: there is no commercial pricing, no go-to-market motion, and no revenue in the traditional sense. Patient services are delivered free at the point of use. Customer segments are the general public (primary) and receiving healthcare facilities such as WakeMed (secondary). The agency maintains an Office of Professional Development offering online continuing education and a public blog (wakeems2.wordpress.com) for protocol dissemination, but these are informational rather than revenue-generating channels.

Name

Wake County Emergency Medical Services

Legal name

Wake County Emergency Medical Services

Website

https://wakeems.com

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Wake County Emergency Medical Services is a county-government EMS agency in Raleigh, NC, providing 911-based emergency medical response, ambulance transport, and specialized clinical protocols including induced hypothermia and active shooter response to county residents.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Emergency Medical Services

NAICS

Ambulance Services (621910)

SIC

Services-Health Services (8000)

akta.pro primary industry

Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Operations & Dispatch (HLAJAGAC)

akta.pro secondary industries

Emergency Medical Services (EMS) & Ambulance Services (BPAIAGAC), Emergency Management & Disaster Response (EOC, Civil Defense) (BPAIAGAE)

Keywords

• Emergency medical services
• Ambulance transport
• Prehospital clinical care
• Cardiac arrest treatment
• Emergency medical response

Headquarters

HQ city

Raleigh

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Others

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Wake County EMS is a county government department providing 24/7 emergency medical response, ambulance transport, and advanced clinical care for medical emergencies across Wake County, North Carolina. The organization operates specialized clinical protocols including pre-hospital induced hypothermia (I.C.E.) for cardiac arrest patients, active shooter response protocols, and the North Carolina Ambulance Strike Team (NCAST) for major events.

Product overview

Wake County Emergency Medical Services operates as a county government EMS system providing emergency medical response, ambulance transport, and clinical care. The organization offers a range of specialized services including pre-hospital induced hypothermia protocols for cardiac arrest, active shooter response protocols, and participates in the North Carolina Ambulance Strike Team (NCAST) for major emergency events. Their Office of Professional Development provides training and continuing education for EMS personnel. The system also maintains educational resources including clinical checklists, presentation materials, and protocol documentation for both internal and external use.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Emergency Medical Services System Core EMS system providing emergency medical response, ambulance services, and clinical care for medical emergencies across Wake County, North Carolina. Available 24/7 to residents and visitors via 911 dispatch.
• Induced Hypothermia Protocol (I.C.E.) Pre-hospital induced hypothermia protocol for cardiac arrest patients, featuring clinical checklists, presentation materials, pocket guides, and SAEM documentation showing a four-fold increase in survival rates for field implementation.
• Office of Professional Development EMS education and training division offering on-line training programs, continuing education credits, and professional development resources for EMS personnel.
• Active Shooter Protocol Specialized protocol and equipment guidelines for EMS response to active shooter situations, including tactical medical support procedures and dedicated equipment.
• EMS Strike Team (NCAST) North Carolina Ambulance Strike Team Project - coordinated emergency medical assets for deployment before, during, and after major events in cooperation with the North Carolina Office of EMS.

Quantifiable outcome

• Four-fold increase in survival rates with induced hypothermia protocol

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• North Carolina Office of EMScoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerWake County EMS in cooperation with the North Carolina Office of EMS is working on an exploratory project to establish EMS Strike Teams (NCAST) across the State. These coordinated assets are for use before, during, and after a major event.
• WakeMedminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerWakeMed is referenced as an example hospital for the induced hypothermia protocol implementation, showing coordination between Wake County EMS field protocols and hospital-based continuation of care.

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Falck USA: International EMS and ambulance provider with US operations across multiple states. Provides both 911 and inter-facility services as a full-service EMS model at broader scale.
• American Medical Response (AMR): Largest private ambulance and EMS provider in the United States with multi-state operations. Represents the broader private-sector alternative to public EMS, competing for 911 and inter-facility contracts.
• Acadian Ambulance Service: Privately held multi-state ambulance and EMS provider headquartered in Louisiana with comparable ground and air medical service delivery.

Direct peers

• New Orleans EMS: Municipal EMS agency serving New Orleans, Louisiana. Public-sector EMS peer of comparable size operating under municipal governance with a similar service mandate.
• Richmond Ambulance Authority (RAA): Public utility-model EMS agency serving Richmond, Virginia. Operates under a similar public-authority structure with comparable 911 and inter-facility service scope.
• Mecklenburg EMS Agency (MEDIC): Public utility-model EMS agency serving Mecklenburg County (Charlotte), North Carolina. The closest structural and geographic peer, also a county-government EMS provider of comparable scale and population served.

Regional players

• Durham County EMS: County-government EMS provider serving neighboring Durham County, North Carolina. Regional peer operating under the same NC regulatory framework and EMS protocols.
• Guilford County EMS: County-government EMS provider serving the Greensboro/High Point region of North Carolina. Regional peer with comparable North Carolina scope and operating model.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks4 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/wake-county-emergency-medical-services

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Wake County Emergency Medical Services