Code 3

Randy starts a grueling 24-hour shift with Mike aboard Ambulance #42. He feels chastised, overworked, and overlooked by healthcare professionals and uniformed personnel. Jessica is assigned as a student ride-along, signaling an added load for the night.

Randy attends an interview at an insurance company, hoping for a calmer pace away from the frontline. He discusses his 18 years in the field and his burnout with the interviewer. He leaves with the sense that the position may have gone to someone else, deepening his resolve about his career path. The moment underscores his fatigue and what’s at stake during the long night.

During the night, a call confirms he got the insurance job. He is elated by the news, but Shanice orders him to finish the shift before moving on to the new position. The tension between professional duty and personal ambition becomes a central theme of the night.

The team negotiates a dangerous call involving a man with a stick lodged in his eye. They stabilize him, manage pain, and prepare for transport, highlighting the technical and emotional challenges of emergency care.

The crew delivers an 11-year-old boy to the hospital, but the child dies. The loss hits Randy and Mike hard, reminding them of the fragility of life and the limits of medicine.

They restrain a mentally disturbed individual who believes he is the President of the United States. The encounter becomes dangerous as the patient and the responders face the risk of gunfire, underscoring the unpredictable threats paramedics face.

Jessica is initially highly critical of Randy’s decisions and his approach to emergency care. She questions his methods and his willingness to bend standard protocols under pressure.

As the night unfolds, Jessica begins to understand why EMTs do what they do and why Randy is the way he is after 18 years in the field. She develops respect for the hard-won experience behind his decisions.

The crew responds to a severe car crash and becomes the first on scene to save a mother and her baby. They label the patients Priority 1 and coordinate rapid, decisive action to stabilize them before transport.

Randy decides to divert to the nearest hospital rather than transport to the university hospital as instructed. The move puts him at odds with protocol but aims to get faster care for the critical patients.

Arriving at the hospital, the team is reprimanded by Chief Dr. Serrano for diverting. Jessica intervenes and reveals herself to be the new ER resident, adding a personal stake to the disagreement.

At the end of the night, Randy receives a heartfelt farewell from his colleagues and supervisor for his last shift. The moment honors his years of service and the bond with the crew.

After starting his new job at the insurance company, Randy struggles with the slow, calm pace of office work. He eventually quits and returns to the field, realizing he belongs as a paramedic.