Fewer things are more certain than the average citizen, family member, or friend needing an ambulance at some point in their lives. For many rural areas of Alger County, where proximity to the nearest hospital is measured in country miles, there aren’t enough local EMTs available in case of emergencies.
After a recent Munising Jobs Facebook post advertising EMT training courses, local Alger County medical services are hoping the message will drum up excitement with people who are perhaps on again-off again about joining the EMS field.
Tina Waldron, a dedicated EMS coordinator based in Marquette, is leading the comprehensive program starting October 8 at the School of Emergency Medical Technology (SEMT) in Marquette.
While the course costs $1300, Alger County offers to pay half for those who can’t foot the whole bill, said Waldron. To qualify for the aid students must both complete the course and commit to one year with Alger County EMT services, after which the students will be reimbursed for $650 of their payment.
Waldron added that If enough students participate courses could potentially be held in Alger County instead of Marquette, where the program is typically run. Still, as of now interested students should plan to commute to the SEMT. The program is held on Tuesdays and Thursdays, with Tuesday online and Thursday in person, both from 6 to 10 p.m.
While comprehensive and far-reaching, the course doesn’t immediately prepare someone for placement in an EMT job; there’s hands-on training required to develop a competent life saver, including a shadowing period and on-the-job learning.
Waldron, who’s seen her share of ebbs and flows in the EMS scene, said their current staff shortage isn’t just an Alger County problem, but a national one.
“Being that we’re in Alger County, I take our situation a little more to heart, but EMT services everywhere are seeing staff shortages. There are even cases where we’re seeing long-time staff age out with no real youth movement to replace them.”
Making the shortage worse is people taking these EMT courses as a stepping stone for other careers in the medical field, said Waldron. “So, EMTs often don’t stay long.”
Not that it’s any act of betrayal to leave one medical profession for another, but the overall thinning effect in the EMT field can already be felt. “It’s worrying that in a place the size of Alger County, without an ambulance and staff on standby in certain locations, some remote residents may wait up to an hour before we can reach them.”
While there may be no such thing as an easy solution, Waldron hopes the courses will demonstrate just how exciting EMT work can be. “We all live in a community, and like a police department needs officers and a school needs teachers, we need EMTs to run our ambulances.”
Interested students should contact Santina Ferzacca Waldron at 906-387-7025
