Hendry County EMS, Hendry County EDC, and Medical Career Institute of Bonita Springs Partner to offer 16-week Emergency Medical Technician course to Hendry County Workforce
Hendry County EMS Operations Chief Donna Akin took the concept of adding needed training to the Hendry County workforce to local and regional partners and together made this concept a reality. According to Akin, “The need for an EMT course was recognized by myself, and then presented to County Administration to ensure that the project would adhere to contract rules. It took several months of planning and patience for the entire project to come together. It was not any one person’s work that made this happen but the desire of all of us to bring a course that will hopefully lead to the employment of local people into local jobs. If this happens then the stability of the EMS will be greatly affected. Talks have already started as to how to make the next level of certification happen for currently employed EMTs and it would be my hope that this will be able to take place sometime in late 2017. Quality Paramedics are desperately needed by the EMS department and it has been proven that hiring local talent in this area greatly stabilizes the turn-over of these positions in rural departments. Even though I will be retiring in December 2016, I hope to play an integral part in making this training happen for Hendry County EMS.”
Course Details
-Emergency Medical Technician course
–Medical Career Institute – Bonita Springs, FL (Program Director & CEO- Richard Gonzalez)
-16-week duration; student must pass a national standardized exam to receive certification
-The salary for this area is approximately $32,000 starting with a 24 hour shift schedule
-There are 10 students, most are firefighters and their names are not public record
-The cost of the course per student was $2,050. Currently the course can only be offered to the volunteer firefighters or employees of the County due to rules as a contract class
The key to Akin’s successful effort was her ability to identify a needed skill, pull together the resources needed to make the training for this void a reality, and executing collaboratively with local and regional partners.
If you or your business could benefit from the availability of specific training for current, or new employees, contact me directly at brent@hendry.com