Central EMS worked with Laurie Smith of Farmington Junior High School to teach basic airway techniques to her students. Ms. Smith teaches a certification for Emergency Medical Responders (EMR) and asked Central EMS for assistance with instructing airway management. Students learned how to open and maintain an airway on an unresponsive patient using oral and nasal devices. They also learned how to perform rescue breathing for patients that are not breathing properly as well as how to ventilate a patient that is not breathing at all. Students practiced their new skills on manikins brought by the paramedics.
Completing Ms. Smith’s class to be a certified EMRs is the first step into the world of prehospital healthcare. Ms. Smith also pointed out that not all of her students plan to work in emergency services. Some students may prefer to use the education and experience as a foothold into other healthcare related fields. Battalion Chief Josh Kuykendall informed the students that some EMTs and paramedics from Central EMS went on to become physicians and even surgeons with some still working in this area.
