Chidera Olalere

In the summer of 2024, I spent June through August undertaking an EMT certification class. The purpose of the class was to teach students the theoretical and practical skills required to be an EMT. We had class on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 8am to 4pm, and we were also required to complete a certain number of 8- to 12-hour shadowing shifts with ambulances in the county. 

There were a lot of concepts and information that we had to absorb over the 2 months, since there’s just so much that goes into even the shortest of patient encounters. Something that I learned is that EMTs and EMS providers in general are a small part of the large system of healthcare, but every single person’s contribution is important to help the patient get back to a state of wellness. 

The EMT class itself was sponsored by SUA, the ambulance program on campus that I became a part of last semester. I hope to continue using my EMT certification and the knowledge and practice opportunities provided by the ambulance to learn more about how to be the best patient care provider I can be.