A section of the graduants
A total of 79 Ghana Armed Forces (GAF) personnel, constituting the Emergency Medical Technicians (EMTs), have passed out after receiving 12 months training in emergency medical procedures from the National Ambulance Service (NAS).
The trainees were taken through basic principles of resuscitation, control of haemorrhage, bandaging of wounds and oxygen administration, among other courses.
In an address, Director-General of Personnel, GAF, Brigadier General Omane Agyekum, indicated that as enshrined in the world standard of Emergency Medical Services (EMS) operative areas, the Military EMTs would not do anything different from their colleagues in Ghana and other parts of the world.
He added that the Military EMTs would be assigned job descriptions such as opening and maintaining of airways of their patients, ventilating patients, administering cardiopulmonary resuscitation and the use of automated external defibrillation.
Brigadier General Agyekum commended the NAS for their efforts and collaboration in training the EMTs, and expressed the hope that the collaboration would continue to ensure that the GAF will always have sufficient number of EMTs.
The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the NAS, Ahmed Zakariah, explained that the 79 EMTs who have passed out would augment the current Military EMT staff of 66.
In his view, the passing out of the 79 EMTs is an indication that the collaboration between the NAS and GAF had yielded a lot of dividends.
Corporal Alfred Ocran was adjudged the overall best student and was also awarded the best student for his excellent performance in cognitive.
BY Ernest Pappoe