Rowan County officials report there is a shortage of paramedic workers throughout the region. However, a new education program aims to bridge the gap. Rowan County EMS is partnering with BridgeValley Community and Technical College in West Virginia to offer partial scholarships for aspiring paramedics.
Homer Lewis is the Director of Rowan County EMS. He says the paramedic shortage went unacknowledged for years because many people work for multiple EMS stations.
“When COVID hit, guess what? You couldn’t really work for two or three services because if you got sick? If one person got sick, they took medical services away from two services or maybe even three,” said Lewis. “So then, these services were suffering, so they’re like, ‘oh, we’ve got this big shortage.’ So, the state kind of realized they were behind the 8 ball.”
Now, the year-long comprehensive paramedic course will take place in the Rowan EMS station, acting as a satellite classroom for BridgeValley. Officials said three exceptional students, likely students with the highest pre-test scores, will receive a $10,000 scholarship.
Lewis said the class and scholarship aim to promote paramedic education and curb expenses within an at-need region.
"It is going to save them money. It’s a little more expensive for the class because there are clinicals they have to do in ride-time. Well, when you can do all that stuff locally versus having to travel an hour, two hours away, that saves you money in the long run," said Lewis.
The scholarship will cover half of the out-of-state tuition in return for a set amount of service to Rowan EMS. FAFSA aid is also available to cover the remaining costs of the program, and Rowan EMS is seeking state funding to further subsidize the costs for students.
People interested in becoming paramedics should already hold an Emergency Medical Technician certificate, available locally at KCTCS.
More information is available by contacting the Rowan County EMS non-emergency line, or BridgeValley Community College.