Aaron Keisling, Page Fire Department engineer and paramedic (left), and Robert DeLeon, PFD firefighter and paramedic, will be teaching a 16-week Emergency Medical Technician course at Coconino Community College in Page starting Oct. 13. Courtesy photo.
PAGE — They are often the first ones on the scene when a person is sick or injured and needs help. They should have compassion, solve problems on the fly, and be able to work under pressure.
Being an Emergency Medical Technician is a rewarding career, and Coconino Community College is offering a course to help Page area residents become certified EMTs. People interested in registering for the 16-week course can find out more about it Thursday during two Zoom information sessions at 4 p.m. and 6 p.m.
“Just like the Certified Nursing Assistant program, the EMT course is something people in Page have been asking about for a long time,” said Kay Leum, Executive Director of Extended Learning at CCC. She added that the course was designed to run the last eight weeks of the fall and the first eight weeks of spring, which is a less busy time of year for the community. “It’s the perfect time to learn a new skill and get certified.”
The course comes with a number of requirements before students are allowed to join, Leum added. Among them are: Basic Life Support (CPR training, also offered at CCC in Page), proficiency in reading and English, and being current on vaccinations and immunizations.
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, EMT is a career expecting to grow by as much as 6 percent in Coconino County in the next 10 years.
Aaron Keisling, co-instructor for the course, who is also an engineer and paramedic at the Page Fire Department said, “You’re going to need a good work ethic. Honesty, integrity and a good attitude are also important, so that you can maintain a good relationship with people you’re providing a service to.”
Keisling will be co-teaching the course with fellow PFD firefighter and paramedic, Robert DeLeon. The course, which begins on Oct. 13, is meant to prepare students for the EMT certification exam. Students are going to be learning how to provide a basic level of care, how to assess vital signs, how to care for wounds, and more, in order to treat and transport sick and injured patients to a medical facility.
Getting those qualifications give you more of an ability to render care as a first-responder, and that could make a difference between life and death, Keisling added.
It is a rewarding career, to be sure.
“It’s a selfless job,” Keisling said. “You serve your community, and you’re doing what you need to do to help others. For me, I get to help people and make a difference in their day, because they’re calling me on their worst day, and hopefully, I get to help change that.”
Limited in-person seats are available for the Zoom sessions on Thursday. To log into the sessions, go to Zoom, plug in the meeting ID: 98099730614, and punch in the password 579998.
For more information, contact Jessica.Dodson@coconino.edu, or call (928) 645-3987. The CCC Page Center is located at 475 S. Lake Powell Blvd.