(AP) — A mock-up of an ambulance filled one corner of the classroom and simulated hospital rooms took up the opposite wall, but Grant Wilson's students one recent morning were focused on the 3-inch-thick books in front of them simply labeled "Paramedic Textbook." The situation is so urgent many departments nonetheless cover the cost of training their EMTs into paramedics -- often between $7,000 and $8,000 at NWACC -- while also continuing to pay EMTs' salaries while they're taking the course and paying other EMTs to fill in for them in the meantime. "The last few (paramedics) we've hired have either been from Missouri or Oklahoma," said Chief Stephen Sims of the Bella Vista Fire Department, which, like most ambulance services in the area, employs people trained as both firefighters and EMTs or paramedics. In Gravette, where a fire department with eight positions provides ambulance service to Benton County's northwest corner, paramedic and captain David Orr occasionally has worked shifts more than 80 hours long in the past two months to fill an empty paramedic position. "After you've been here two or three days it starts to wear on you pretty hard," Orr said, adding his girlfriend's youngest child, a toddler, forgot who he was after one long shift. Orr recalled one from someone with insomnia, another for a mild fever -- wear him down the most, and he must go to every one while on duty. Departments across the state have complained of the shortage, mostly in rural areas, said Greg Brown, chief of the Arkansas Health Department's emergency medical services branch. Scattered reports around the country from The Associated Press and other news outlets have described localized shortages as well. Some paramedics go on to work at hospital emergency rooms instead of ambulances even without becoming nurses because of better pay or other reasons, Brown and other officials said. Becky Stewart, chief for Central EMS, sai
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By DAN HOLTMEYER, Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, San Antonio Express-News: World
Sun, 10/23/2016 - 11:06pm
Topics: paramedic textbook. the last few (paramedics) we after you ap grant wilson nwacc missouri oklahoma chief stephen sims bella vista fire department in gravette benton county david orr departments greg brown arkansas health department scattered the associated press becky stewart central ems a emts orr northwest short ambulance rooms hospital long wear fill pay services emergency corner
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