Two recent issues of the Journal of the American Medical Association were devoted to violence and its impact on health care providers. EMS personnel in rural, as well as urban, areas, have seen incidents of violence rise as people seem to take the law into their own hands. EMS personnel attribute the rise in violence largely to the escalating drug trade as well as gang activity. In response, departments in some large cities are practicing battlefield triage procedures in cases where ambulance personnel may come under fire or attack. Domestic violence situations may also be dangerous for EMS personnel who arrive on the scene. Many EMS personnel are meeting the challenge of personal safety head-on by wearing body armor, requesting police escorts, and training in self- protection skills. Working under these types of conditions increases the stress level among EMS personnel and their families. Better street training for EMS personnel and public education may be the key to reducing the problem.