Emergency Medical Technology named Advisory Committee of the Year

From left are (front row) Carolyn Stewart, health care program director at the College; Donna Palmer, health professions department head at Tri-County; Dr. Ahmad Chaudhry, dean of the Health Education Division at the College; William Tatum, chair of the advisory committee; and EMT Program Director Ryan Nix; and (back row) advisory committee members Dan Cooper, chief of staff at Tri-County; Randy Bowers, Alex Bowers, Ken Whitten and Scott Stoller.

Tri-County Technical College’s Emergency Medical Technology (EMT) Advisory Committee was recognized for its achievements this year at the College’s fall convocation.

Committee members and Program Director Ryan Nix accepted the Advisory Committee of the Year award for 2019.

New at the College this fall, the EMT – Paramedic program offers an associate degree and two certificate options for future EMTs and paramedics.  For the past several years, the advisory committee, comprised of EMS providers, spent countless hours assisting College officials in developing the program which is housed at the Easley Campus.

“The advisory committee has been instrumental in advancing the program through its involvement in and support of a cooperative work experience for all students in the program,” said Donna Palmer, health professions department head at Tri-County.

“They are committed to their profession, the success of this program and a quality education for competent and qualified EMTs and paramedics.  Their goal is to ensure that the workforce shortages that our community and state are facing are filled and that this program can provide highly qualified health professionals to meet the needs of their patients and our community in emergency and disaster preparedness,” said Palmer.

She said that the advisory committee has been supportive in the College’s efforts to obtain accreditation and approvals from the many regulatory agencies, including DHEC, CAAHEP, COAEMSP and the National Registry of Emergency Medical Technology.

When the advisory committee was created in 2016, the team was charged with developing a curriculum by attending a workshop (DACUM) where they worked to incorporate all of the many competencies and work-related experiences to help support the curriculum, said Palmer.

The EMT/Paramedic program development was funded by an Appalachian Regional Commission grant.  “The advisory committee recommended a consultant, providing me with equipment recommendations and connecting me to the appropriate people to ensure that we were getting the best prices and equipment to meet DHEC, CAAHEP and CoAEMSP standards. The equipment and supplies were secured and purchased, which provided us the opportunity to have our DHEC inspection. Our committee also toured our Easley Campus and gave insights and recommendations for the construction and remodeling of classroom and lab space.

The committee also was directly involved with hiring the program director, she said.

The advisory committee also had input for the “Letter of Review” approval process and will be continually reviewing the course syllabi and student learning outcomes for input into the curriculum. This is mandated by CoAEMSP Standard II. A.