For some, summer break is a time of rest and relaxation, but not for seniors Vishnu Nalluri, Michael Sing, Jason Park, and junior Sai Chellarapu. The four spent their summers learning how to save lives instead, through their participation in an EMT training program with the organization Associates in Emergency Care. Associates in Emergency Care is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs.  

The unique opportunity to experience the life of an EMT was originally the idea of Rock Ridge alumni and former Pre-Professional Health Honor Society members Sophia DiFulvio and Nathan Ayestas. “ [DiFulvio and Ayestas] were seeking an EMT program opportunity, so we did the research together,” biology teacher and Pre-Professional Health Honor Society (PHS) sponsor Madina Mamatova said. “They did a whole presentation for the students of PHS, and most of the [PHS] students were in direct contact with Sophia and Nathan and they held their hands through the process.” 

The program didn’t require many prerequisite certifications to be completed before the students could begin working with Associates in Emergency Care. “All they required us to do was to obtain a CPR certificate,” Chellarapu said.    

Even though he doesn’t plan on pursuing a career as an EMT, Park decided to join the program over the summer because of his personal interest in helping people. “The idea of helping people out, especially those in their most vulnerable state, is important to me,” Park said.   

Unlike Park, Chellarapu joined the program because he intends to pursue a career in the medical field. “[I joined the EMT program] to get some hands-on medical experience,” Chellarapu said. “I definitely am planning to go into a medical field, and that is why I’m in the Pre-Professional Health Honor society and one of the opportunities that they offered was the EMT program.” 

Even though the course gave the students a large amount of work to complete — requiring around twelve hours per week — the program was worthwhile for Chellarapu. “Prior to entering this program, I had absolutely no idea about the medical field, but after joining [the program] I got a really good idea of what out-of hospital care looks like,” Chellarapu said. Chellarapu was able to get hands-on experience in an ambulance after completing the program by signing up with a local fire department. “[The course] has a final exam called the NREMT [National Registry of Emergency Medical Technicians]  and after you pass it, then you can volunteer.” 

Participating in the course with fellow students made the course easier to complete and more enjoyable. “I don’t think I would’ve been able to do [the EMT program] by myself; [the other students] studied with me and were there for me,” Park said. 

The students are already seeing the benefits of their participation in the program. “[The course] was pretty hard, but definitely rewarding,” Park said. “Seeing my work pay off and learning how to help people was really nice.”   

Similarly, Mamatova is pleased with the results of the EMT program that she helped bring to students. “Everybody has found [the program] to be so beneficial and it has helped the students grow in not just their understanding of applying sciences in the real world, but also in their people and time management skills,” Mamatova said. Mamatova says that PHS plans to offer many more hands-on experiences similar to the EMT program in the future. “PHS is trying to offer as many hands-on opportunities for students as possible.”