Two Santa Fe graduates recently completed an EMT training course through the Pettis County Ambulance District.

According to Justin Cross, Division Chief/Course Coordinator and Primary Instructor for Pettis County AD, the course is a fivemonth program that meets two nights a week for four hours each night.

“During that time, students receive a combination of classroom instruction and hands-on training, including patient assessment, basic life support, CPR, airway management, trauma care, and responding to a variety of emergency medical situations,” Cross said. “In addition to class time, students are required to complete clinical hours on an ambulance to help hone the skills they’ve learned.”

Once the class is completed, students are eligible to take the practical exam, which tests the hands-on skills they’ve developed. If successful, they then move on to a computer-based test. On March 30, Joscie Curry and Guthrie Baldwin, both Santa Fe alumni, completed the training course, and in mid-April the pair successfully passed their practical (clinical) exams. They now wait for the opportunity to take the final computer-based exam.

After passing both the practical and computer-based exams, students become certified through the National Registry of Emergency Medical Technicians (NREMT). At that point, they are also eligible to apply for state licensure and begin working as EMTs.