Offline WA BLS/ILS Protocols

By John

June 25, 2026

tl;dr

Here is an offline Washington State BLS protocol web app that you can run on any device with a browser. The content is ported from the Washington State 2024 BLS/ILS Protocol Guidance – EMR, EMT, AEMT Level pdf document.

Installing WA BLS/ILS Protocols

Open https://johnspeare.github.io/wa-ems-protocols/ in your browser, then follow the steps for your device:

Note: The app works fully offline after the first visit. On iPhone and Android it opens fullscreen with no browser chrome, like a native app. Any updates to the app will automatically refresh when you open it with an online connection.

Backstory

In Ferry County, I cosplay as a useful human by volunteering for the Joint Fire Protection District 3&8. My main role is as an EMT.

As a volunteer, I make the call on when I’m on the clock and which calls that I go on. Our service area is sprawling and sparsely populated. I generally spend a few days a week in Ferry County. As a result, I don’t do enough EMT calls to keep sharp. During my training, an EMT instructor told us that to be a competent EMT, you need to work in a busy system for at least 6 months. That totally adds up.

So when I go on calls, I always have a low-grade anxiety about remembering specific details for each scenario. For example, medications: their indications, contraindications, and doses. Or various field assessments for strokes, level of consciousness, burn area, etc. All of these are laid out in protocols at the state level in a 130 page pdf document. Our department has a manual that derives from the state protocol that is about 190 pages.

On the way to a call, if I’m not driving, I’ll either talk through the protocol with a partner EMT, or if the driver is not an EMT, then I’ll go through the department manual to refresh the details in my head.

I’ve always wanted this content on my phone. Putting it on my phone as a pdf would be worse than nothing. Since starting this volunteer gig over a year ago, I have wondered how to best port the protocols into an offline phone app. Bonus points if it’s searchable and easy to navigate.

In my day job as a technical writer at a giant software company, in the last 6 months or so, I’ve transitioned to working with AI all day every day. The project of porting the Washington State EMS protocols into a useful offline mobile app became super easy with AI.

I had the opportunity to take a 2 hour ambulance ride a couple days ago as a patient and the EMT who was taking care of me was excited about the app and installed it. Customer zero! Hopefully it’s useful for others.

ai cosplay emt