Hunter Ambulance’s EMT program graduates 14
BY ROBBIE SEQUEIRA
Carmel, New York native
Tammi Booker was tired of feeling
powerless, as she watched
many of her family members
deal with medical emergencies,
including her mother and stepfather
who encountered severe
medical emergencies two years
ago.
“I had always wanted to be
in the medical fi eld but didn’t
have the fi nances to explore med
school and school had never been
my thing,” Booker said. “Once I
learned there was something I
could do — like get my mother
to the hospital faster — I became
intrigued … with hopes of being
someone who would know what
to do when a medical emergency
happened next time.”
Compelled by the urge to
save lives, Booker enrolled in the
Learn While You Earn Program,
a 10-week emergency medical
technician (EMT) training program
that launched at the west
Bronx’s Hunter Ambulance this
summer.
Booker, 27, is now one of the
program’s 14 inaugural graduates
turned EMTs who received
their certifi cations on Monday.
“A person’s quality of life
shouldn’t be altered just because
of timely fashion that people decide
to care,” she said. “I wanted
to make sure that I could provide
medical assistance and qualitative
support for anyone whenever
they needed it, and this program
has made that possible.”
The program was launched
with the goal of graduating 80
soon-to-be EMTs into a workforce
that is in the midst of a “crisis
level” labor shortage. Eligible
for NYC residents age 18 and
older who have at least a high
school diploma or a GED, the program
allows for paid on-the-job
training while taking the necessary
certifi cation courses to become
EMTs.
According to American Medical
Response (AMR), a subsidiary
of Global Medical Response
(GMR) and a major partner in
the program, “all training costs
are covered, and upon successful
completion of the program and
obtaining their state certifi cation,
graduates are promoted to
EMT-B with a competitive pay
rate increase.”
Pat Pickering, regional director
of AMR Metro New York,
told the Times that six graduates
apiece will spend one year with
AMR and GMR, while two will
work for Crowd Rx, which provides
BRONX TIMES R 26 EPORTER, OCT. 8-14, 2021 BTR
EMS services for events at
Yankee Stadium and Madison
Square Garden.
“How cool is it that you
have two graduates from the
Bronx getting a chance to work
in their backyard at Yankee
Stadium and getting a chance
to contribute to their community
by providing high-quality
EMS service?” Pickering said.
“I have been in the emergency
medical services profession for
more than 30 years and while
the world has changed the tenets
of the profession have not
— the pandemic has shown us
that there has never been a time
when the call for caregiving has
been so crucial.”
Through the Earn While
Learn Program, AMR has graduated
more than 500 EMS professionals
through similar programs
in locations in the Midwest and the
South. Proponents of the program
hope that the first wave of graduates
through the program can contribute
to a workforce shortage of
EMTs in New York City.
During the COVID-19 pandemic,
New York State EMT graduates
and enrollees were down
30%.
“Despite the loss of jobs and the
negative economic impact of COVID
19, some companies continue
to create jobs and inclusive opportunities
thanks to partnerships
like the one we have with Global
Medical Response,” said state Assemblyman
Kenneth Burgos, who
represents District 85 which encompasses
the Hunts Point and
Soundview sections of the Bronx.
Booker, the Carmel native, will
spend her first year as an EMT
with AMR, but said her prospects
range from a future as a paramedic
to alternative career paths
in the medical field.
“Initially, I thought I would
take this path to be a paramedic,
but through this course, I’ve been
able to identify many paths for a
career choice,” Booker said.
GMR is set to launch another
10-week program in New York
City later this year, and applicants
must apply by Dec. 1.
On Monday, Hunter Ambulance celebrated 14 inaugural graduatesturned
EMTs through it’s Earn While You Learn Program.
Photo Aracelis Batista