Students earn EMT certification with help from SU Ambulance corps

Students earn EMT certification with help from SU Ambulance corpsDecember 02, 2002Karen Trendell

The campus is a safer place for those in medical need thanks to 10 student volunteers from the Syracuse University Ambulance (SUA) corps. The volunteers completed the Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) Training Program through Rural/Metro Medical Services of Central New York this year; all are now certified EMTs. Under the direction of Timothy Perkins, emergency medical services manager, each student was required to participate in 180 hours of classroom and clinical time, with additional training and clinical practice from SUA.

“I am very proud and impressed with the motivation and dedication displayed by these students,” says Perkins. “One of the best things about completing the EMT class, and receiving the certification, is that it directly impacts the campus community in a very positive way. These student EMTs are a vital link in the campus community, and in the University’s public safety model.”

Students find the time between class schedules and weekends to fulfill their obligation to the SUA. EMT volunteers are required to ‘sign up’ for 14 hours of ambulance coverage every two weeks, but most student EMTs sign up for more hours.

The entire Ambulance corps is made up of a team of 50 student volunteers and operates as the primary ambulance provider to the SU campus, including off-campus student residences, and to the SUNY ESF campus as well.