The heroic EMT who rushed to save a suspected overdosing Knicks fan at the team’s parade Thursday says the emergency is exactly what she was made for.
Simone Kelly, 24, of New Jersey told The Post on Friday that she has dreams of becoming an emergency psychiatrist with a focus on drug abuse and psychiatric concerns, making her the perfect person to jump into such situations.
Strangers have even recognized her ability thanks to the encounter, she said — offering to help her secure a spot in medical school.
“There have been people who are like, ‘Hey, I know someone who works here,’ or, ‘My husband knows a friend,’ ” Kelly said from her Maplewood home. “People are really going through the avenues to help me out.
“That’s really the only thing that I need personally. With all this attention for something I did medically, let’s get this to the platforms of people who can help me become a doctor!”
Kelly, a full-time student studying neuroscience at Drew University, was watching the Knicks parade down the Canyon of Heroes from her perch on a city Sanitation truck when the incident unraveled.
She and several other people rushed to the apparently ailing man’s rescue and identified his shallow breathing and pinpoint pupils as telltale signs of an opioid overdose, she said.
Fortunately, someone in the crowd was carrying Narcan and tossed it to Kelly, who works 60 hours a month as a volunteer EMT.
Incredible video of the rescue captured the ordeal, including the administering of the anti-overdose treatment and Kelly rapidly rubbing the man’s chest to test his unresponsiveness.
She even had to deal with the man shooting up at some point and grabbing her, making multiple attempts to plant a kiss on her face — a bizarre form of thanks she said she gets a lot while volunteering with New Jersey’s South Orange Rescue Squad.
At first, she simply turned her face away but was then forced to push him off when he didn’t give up.
“I’ve had to deal with it more than I would like to in my profession,” Kelly said.
“A lot of the time, I’ve had to swat the hand away or shut down a conversation that is not going in the direction I wanted it to go in. Or … someone trying to kiss me after I Narcan him.
“I have a shift tonight, I wouldn’t be surprised if it happens again,” she said.
In spite of the annoyance, Kelly said she doesn’t hold anything against the man she helped Thursday.
Instead, she said she hopes the viral video can serve as a learning moment.
“I do not believe that addiction is a choice,” said Kelly, pointing to groups such as OnPoint NYC as resources for drug addicts to turn to.
“That’s where I want attention to be. Let’s start having a more holistic conversation about addiction and substance abuse.”
