Five openings remain for first free BC3 EMS Academy
Five openings remain in the first free Butler County Community College EMS Academy, where 12 adults can earn a $520 weekly stipend by reaching benchmarks as they pursue their emergency medical technician certification.
The training is scheduled for June 17 to Aug. 4, and is ultimately meant to help offset a shortage of first responders in Butler County.
Prospective students at least 18 years old can learn about the academy’s curriculum, post-certification commitment to work for a licensed ambulance service that assists Butler County communities and how to apply at bc3.edu/ems-academy.
May 31 is the application deadline.
Students earning an EMT certification can “provide basic life-support care for medical emergencies or traumatically injured patients,” said Tom Buttyan, who served 32 years as a paramedic and is the college’s coordinator of EMS and police training programs.
BC3 has been providing emergency medical services training since 1973, Buttyan said. Butler County chose BC3 in December to create the academy and is financing the program with American Rescue Plan Coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Funds.
Students’ progress will be assessed weekly, Buttyan said. Those who meet established benchmarks beyond attendance will receive a $13 hourly stipend for a 40-hour week during the eight-week program.
“What makes things difficult for students who want to learn a new skill or a new trade and move on to a new career is giving up the time to come to school,” said Lisa Campbell, BC3’s dean of workforce development.
“We were very aware that individuals would possibly have to give up their part-time or full-time job to go to school. So we wanted to model this like an apprenticeship program, a learn-and-earn program.”
The college’s EMS training programs are accredited by the state Department of Health.
BC3’s EMS Academy is comprised of 184 hours of training in emergency medical technician, 24 hours in personal empowerment and 16 hours in emergency vehicle driving, Buttyan said.
Classes will be held from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays on BC3’s main campus.
Students will gain clinical experience during an eight-hour ride-along shift with a licensed ambulance service that assists Butler County communities or in the emergency department of Independence Health Care-Butler Memorial Hospital on Fridays, Saturdays or Sundays, Buttyan said.
“Once they complete their basic life-support training, they will be able to assist in chest compressions, ventilations and lifting and moving patients,” Buttyan said of students’ roles in ride-alongs. “They will gradually get into different phases of what occurs during an emergency call.”
Students pursuing weekend clinical experiences in the emergency department “will do many of the same things,” Buttyan said. “Helping with patient vital signs, learning about assessments and observing how things work and how different symptoms progress.”
The shortage of what has been reported to be about 125 EMTs in Butler County has responders “covering a lot of calls that are not in our primary service area,” Allie Palmer said.
Palmer has been an EMT for six years, works with Slippery Rock EMS and is the BC3 EMS Academy recruiter.
“We are covering calls for really any of the services that surround us,” Palmer said. “We get pulled into New Castle a lot. We will cover calls in Grove City. We have a lot longer to get on scene for these emergencies.”
A second free BC3 EMS Academy will be held in the fall, Buttyan said. Two free academies will be held in 2025 and two in 2026.
Bill Foley is coordinator of news and media content at Butler County Community College.
