The 200+ hours of EMT classes and field sessions will provide the GA-PCOM biomedical
sciences students with valuable experience for their academic and professional careers.
Students, faculty and staff can rest even easier this term as 14 Georgia Campus – Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine (GA-PCOM) students plus one manager have been training since June to acquire the skills of emergency medical technicians.
These students, who will earn masters’ degrees in biomedical sciences with a concentration in medical simulation, have passed the 200+ hours of EMT classes offered on campus and are testing for state and national certification. In addition, they have completed 16 hours of “ride-alongs” with Gwinnett County Fire and Emergency Services and have each assessed a minimum of 10 patients in the field.
According to GA-PCOM’s Director of Simulation Jeff Adams, NREMT-P, MS, “There has been an age-old argument about simulation staff needing to have a medical background and I have argued both sides over the years.” He added, “When developing this course, I felt that additional clinical training will increase the students’ job opportunities and help those looking to become physician assistants or physicians.”
According to Moriah Newman, MS ‘ 18, a May graduate who now works as the simulation manager under Adam’s direction in the GA-PCOM Simulation Center, the students have learned basic EMT skills including medications, bone and joint immobilization, trauma assessments and much more.
Newman joined the students in their training as this is the first semester the EMT course has been offered as part of the medical simulation concentration.
“Once our students are certified on a national level, they can seek employment anywhere as an EMT,” she said.
“We are getting an idea of how the human body works on a medical level which provides extra detail when it comes to creating medical simulation scenarios.”
According to Newman, most of the biomedical sciences students are planning to apply for professional schooling beyond their master’s degree, however EMT training can help them, especially in accumulating clinical hours.
PCOM Georgia has been serving students and the community for 20 years as a branch campus of Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine (PCOM), a private, not-for-profit, accredited institution of higher education established in 1899. Located in Suwanee (Gwinnett County), PCOM Georgia offers doctoral degrees in osteopathic medicine, pharmacy and physical therapy. Graduate degrees are offered in biomedical sciences, medical laboratory science and physician assistant studies. The campus joins PCOM South Georgia in Moultrie in helping to meet the healthcare needs of the state. Emphasizing "a whole person" approach to care, PCOM Georgia focuses on educational excellence, interprofessional education and service to the community. For more information, visit pcom.edu or call 678-225-7500. The campus is also home to the Georgia Osteopathic Care Center, an osteopathic manipulative medicine clinic, which is open to the public by appointment. For more information, visit pcomgeorgiahealth.org.
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