Cambrian College, Ornge offer new paramedic training program

Morning North4:48Ornge teams up with Cambrian College to train paramedics

Ornge is teaming up with Cambrian College for a new paramedic program. The ambulance service will use the college to train air and land paramedic. We spoke about the partnership with Dan McGuire, the manager of paramedic education and training at Ornge.

The provinces air ambulance is teaming up with Sudbury's Cambrian College to train more flight and land paramedics.

The collaboration is a way for Ornge to expand its reach and save money, said Dan McGuire, who is in charge of paramedic education and training for the firm.

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Twelve students are already taking the colleges Advanced Care Paramedic graduate certificate program. The course teaches students advanced paramedic skills for use on the ground and in the air.

McGuire said the collaboration meansOrngewon't have to pay to train graduates for advanced flight and land care.

"If we could push some of that out to the community college programs, I think it's just smart business."

Orngewill continue to offer internal training to employees, however.

AnotherOrnge-Cambrianprogram is in the works one that would give land-based paramedics training to hone their skills in the sky.

Cambrians paramedic trainingco-ordinatorat the college, Kevin Branch, said he believes it's a win-win situation for, not onlyOrngeand Cambrian, but also for patients or people of Ontario and northern Ontario."

McGuire noted the training is, in part, a response to a demand for more flight training.

There has to be an intricate balance between what we're doing in the colleges and what we're doing internally, he said.

[We dont want to] close the door on ourselves by providing so much training internally that we wouldn't provide opportunity for students to be able to come in from the community college.

Applications for next year's classes begin Oct. 1.