Abu Dhabi: An initiative to hire Emiratis as emergency medical technicians (EMTs) was launched in Abu Dhabi on Monday, with the programme looking to increase the number of locals working in the medical emergency services sector.
The programme is being launched in collaboration between National Ambulance and the University of Sharjah (USO), and will start in September for the 2017 to 2018 academic year.
The course will run for one year, and will see 35 Emirati high school graduates enrolled in the programme, who will then go on to be hired by the National Ambulance once they complete the one year course.
“In this year of giving, National Ambulance’s new EMT training programme for Emiratis reflects our commitment to support the local community and deliver the UAE’s goals for the future,” said Ahmad Saleh Al Hajeri, deputy chief executive officer of National Ambulance.
“We are responding to demands of a growing health sector and the need for highly-trained health professionals who come from the communities where we operate. Not only are we providing education to international standards, our guarantee of future employment offers a career path to young Emiratis,” he added.
Robert Ball, chief executive officer of National Ambulance, explained that the one-year programme would be split into three separate modules for the students, including theoretical and practical training.
“The programme has three modules. The first module will see an introduction into clinical language and clinical services. The second module will be focused around being an EMT. In both modules the students will be doing things like learning about basic life support, trauma life support, and getting familiarised with the ambulance and equipment,” he said.
“The final module is about operations, and that’s when the students will actually get to go out and onto the road. They will be doing clinical placements at the hospitals in the Northern Emirates, as well as riding along with our ambulances as staff members.
“The final component is the licensed test from the Abu Dhabi Health Authority,” he added.
Ball said that the students would then go on to be hired afterwards once they complete the course.
“Once they graduate and pass the test they will be offered full time jobs as EMTS with us, they will be guaranteed a job.
“We strongly believe in this initiative, this is just the pilot phase, but we will learn from the first year and continue the programme into the future. Our aim is to have 10 per cent of our workforce composed of Emiratis,” he added.
For his part, professor Outayba Hamid, Vice Chancellor for the Medical and Health Sciences Colleges at UOS, said the programme was in line with the university’s strategy of educating and preparing students to better serve their local communities.
“This programme is one of many others that are in preparation and will be released later to be a quantum leap in the strategic plan of UOS to serve the whole community in the Emirate of Sharjah in particular, and UAE as a whole.”
Students who wish to apply for a position can visit the National Ambulance website or register here.
