Grant transforms local firefighters into paramedics
By KRISTI PIHL Staff Reporter
Stanwood-Camano Fire Department Deputy Chief Darin Reid shakes hands with firefighter Joel Musgrove, who is leaving for paramedic training at Harborview Medical Center. Both Musgrove and firefighter/paramedic Ryan White (center), who just returned from the training program, received cardiology stethoscopes, a traditional gift for paramedic students. Ryan White decided he wanted to be a paramedic after riding along as a firefighter in the Camano Island Fire and Rescue medic unit.
He became interested in medicine, and saw it as a "challenge and a chance to make a difference."
Recently, White returned from an intensive 10-month paramedic training program at Harborview Medical Center, in Seattle. That training was made possible through a grant that Stanwood/Camano Fire Department received from the Medic One Foundation. In addition, firefighter and emergency medical technician (EMT) Joel Musgrave will start the same program Wednesday.
Although the Medic One Foundation is based in King County, a grant program for paramedic training has been extended to include Stanwood Camano Fire Department, said Darin Reid, Stanwood Camano Fire Department deputy chief.
The cost for one firefighter to receive the 10-month training at Harborview is $14,000.
Students are trained in pre-hospital medicine, Reid said. EMTs receive more than 110 hours of training, whereas a paramedic has more than 2,000 hours of training.
"It's said to be the best paramedic training nationally, if not internationally," he said.
During the program, White lived in Seattle about a block from Harborview, and worked six to seven days a week.
Once the newly-certified paramedics return from training, they spend several months to a year being evaluated by a local paramedic.
As a paramedic, White can start an IV, administer pain and cardiac medication through an IV and intubate, which involves inserting a tube into the lungs to aid a patient who can't breathe on their own.
White has already used his new skills. On a shift last week, White successfully intubated a woman who was unable to breathe on her own.
White said he appreciated getting a chance to train as a paramedic. He started working for the Stanwood/ Camano Fired Department four years ago. Previously, he was a mechanical engineer in Seattle.
Since the program applies to firefighters already on staff, it means the department isn't adding any positions, Reid said. In addition, firefighters who are already on staff, and then trained as paramedics, tend to stay with the department longer.
When the Stanwood- Camano Fire Department receives donations for emergency medical services, it donates the funds to the Medic One Foundation because the foundation has made a large investment in the local fire department, Reid said.
Staff Reporter Kristi Pihl: 629-8066 ext. 125 or kpihl@scnews.com.
