Hawkeye Community College Hopes To End Paramedic Shortage

The Hawkeye Community College in Waterloo is trying to help end the paramedic shortage in Iowa. They've created a new program hoping to get more paramedics in the state. According to KCRG this will be a hybrid program that starts in January and will help students who need a more flexible schedule.

The paramedic shortage isn't just a problem here in Iowa, it's a problem nation wide. The shortage of Emergency Medical Technicians has impacted ambulances to be streched really thin. Fewer technicians mean taking longer rides to and from places as well as working longer hours.

KCRG spoke with a student in the regular paramedic program, Mollie Sherman, and she said she's learned a lot of problem solving skills from it.

Which is why a lot of people get into [Emergency Medical Services] in general, the adrenaline rush, but also the rush of saving patient’s lives ultimately.

This hybrid program has allowed a lot of the work to be done online, so students can get it done on their own time. If you're working 8 hours a day, five days a week, it can be tough to make it to the regular program every day.

Mollie told KCRG there are over 500 hours of clinicals they need to complete.

We have a lot of clinicals, we have over 500 hours of clinicals that we have to do, and none of that’s paid. So it’s definitely an investment of time.

Hawkeye Community College in Waterloo is currently looking for applicants. If interested you can apply at the Hawkeye College website.