Village Ambulance launches ‘exploring’ program for teens

Posted: 01/09/2010 12:28:57 AM EST



By Meghan Foley

North Adams Transcript

WILLIAMSTOWN -- Village Ambulance Service hopes to offer a new program geared toward teenagers interested in the field of emergency medicine beginning next month.

Through the Boy Scouts of America’s Learning for Life Program, Village Ambulance is offering an "exploring" program to teach people between the ages of 14 and 20 about emergency medicine and to prepare them to become responsible and caring adults.

Shawn P. Godfrey, operations manager for Village Ambulance, said Thursday that as part of the program students will receive training similar to an emergency medical technician, but over a longer period of time.

"We’ve talked about recruitment and retention and have an EMT program. We thought, ‘what a good way to introduce the younger generations into the fields.’ We thought this was one other avenue we could take to recruiting people and introducing the service to the community," he said.

Students participating in the program will meet monthly for two hours, and during that time, there will be training sessions on first aid, CPR, bloodborne pathogens, defibrillation and other areas of emergency medicine, he said.

In addition, the program will teach them how to become good young adults, he said.

"We’re going to have guest speakers come in and focus on those particular components and have people come in and educate along those lines. We’re


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Advertisement

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
looking at ways to do that," he said.
In offering an exploring program, Village Ambulance has been assigned a post number -- EMS Explorer Post 911.

The program is open to both boys and girls living locally and throughout Berkshire County who have completed the eighth grade, and Village hopes to start the program in the first week of February, Godfrey said.

Students can participate in the program for as long as they want, and will have to pay yearly dues of $20 per person and buy their own uniforms, he said.

The program will be paid for through dues and fundraising, he said.

"There is a lot of potential for us. [The students] could ride on the ambulance, become an EMT and eventually work for us," he said.

While Village Ambulance is still working out the final details of the program, Godfrey sees it eventually connecting with other emergency medical services exploring programs across the state.

"We could potentially take field trips to other ambulance services and combine forces with them," he said.

To reach Meghan Foley, e-mail mfoley@thetranscript.com.