The ambulance has certainly come a long way since Dr. Graf’s famous Heart Car! But did you know Dr. Graf didn’t really invent the ambulance? The idea of the ambulance has existed for hundreds—or maybe even thousands—of years.

Can you think of any ambulance-like vehicles in the Bible? In Luke 10, Jesus tells a story about the good Samaritan. The good Samaritan found an injured man on the road. He dressed the man’s wounds. He placed him on his donkey. Then he carried him to an inn where he could take care of him. Just think of that! One of the first “ambulances” had big pointy ears and said “hee-haw!”

Fast forward in history to 1797. There you’ll meet a guy named Baron Dominique Jean-Larrey. He served in Napoleon’s army as a doctor. Many give him credit for inventing prehospital care, or care given to someone on the way to the hospital. His system transported injured men to aid stations. Certain rules decided what kind of care the injured received. That happens in Emergency Medical Services today.

People in the United States started using horse-drawn ambulances around the time of the Civil War. Later, they started to use cars. In some places, people used hearses as ambulances too. And in 1915 in Albania, ambulances got a big upgrade. They started to fly! The Serbian army used aircraft to move injured soldiers. The “flying ambulance” continued to save time—and lives—during the Korean and Vietnam wars.

But things are still changing in the world of ambulances. Ambulances keep getting more spacious. They have better electric inside. And one of these days, they just might go driverless!

Wait a minute. Driverless cars keep getting better and better. But would you want to ride in an ambulance without a driver? It sounds a little scary. But the idea has a good side. Instead of one person driving the ambulance and one taking care of you, both could take care of you!