THS students get EMT head start

Alanah True-Silva plans on majoring in athletic training at Grand Canyon University in Phoenix, Ariz. That’s why the Troy senior is taking a brand-new college-level course offered by the high school.

The class, taught by paramedic Jay Moody, is an emergency medical technician (EMT) training course offered to Troy seniors. By the end of the course, Moody hopes the class will take and pass the national registry test to be EMT certified.

“They are enthusiastic and excited about this class,” Moody said of his high school students. “Most of my students are people who have been in the industry and know the information.”

Moody, a 20-year hospital Corpsman veteran of the Navy, finds these professionals, refreshing their skills, are more apathetic about the class.

Not so with the bubbly True-Silva and her classmates.

“I love being active and helping people,” she said. “You have to be pretty motivated. Some of it is dealing with gory stuff.”

The class was learning CPR last week, and Moody was keeping them at it, working some students into a sweat during the chest compressions on dummies. 

That is a small price to pay, said senior Spencer Swimley, for an experience as useful as the one he receives in the course.

“It seems like a really practical skill and almost a guaranteed job in college,” Swimley said. “So far, it is a lot of fun, but I expect it to be a lot more difficult.”

Swimley, who is thinking about Montana State University, didn’t even mention the best part.

Moody’s EMT class is a five-credit college-level course sponsored by Flathead Valley Community College as part of that school’s Running Start program in place at Troy.

“The students get five college credits if they pass the course,” said Debbie Huisentruit, student services coordinator at Flathead Valley. “It’s great because Running Start students are allocated six free college credits in high school.”

The class was a collaborative effort by Troy Volunteer Ambulance’s president, Warren Edson, and Troy Principal Jacob Francom.

Francom is looking to expand his students’ horizons while allowing them to be active community members. The EMT class, taught in the Troy Volunteer Ambulance building, proved to be a perfect fit.

“Ambulance crews are always looking for people to help out,” Francom said. “The students wanted to do a ride-along but it hit a snag. HIPAA regulations and liability insurance made it impossible.”

That’s where the class came in, as nationally registered EMT students would be certified to work with TVA. Edson is happy to have young blood helping out his program.

“They’ll be registered EMTs capable of giving full pre-hospital care,” Edson said. “When they are done, they have a real skill. This could be a career for them.”