NEWARK, N.J. (PIX11) — A high school in Newark is taking education to a whole new level, unveiling a life-sized ambulance simulator so students can get hands-on experience and learn the ins and outs of what it takes to become an emergency medical technician.
The ambulance simulator, which sits inside a classroom at Essex County Newark Tech, is the same size as the back of an actual ambulance where students learn to care for patients in the same amount of space as they would in the real world, to make their training experience as realistic as possible.
Students are learning first-hand what it means to be an EMT with the simulator that is equipped with hydraulics to mimic road conditions, and a mannequin that screams, cries, and vomits.
“So far, we have learned CPR, how to install nasal and oral airways,” said Skyly Ramirez, a senior at the school. “We have learned how to use the [automated external defibrillator].”
Ramirez graduates in just three months with her certification and will be ready to hit the ground running in the trade. The teen who dreams of one day becoming a physician assistant is hoping to use what she learns in the program as a catalyst to kick start her medical career.
“It’s very exciting to be able to see this before going to the real world because we get those firsthand experiences,” the teen said.
The technical school is the only high school in the state to have the cutting-edge equipment, according to staff. The EMT program is helping to fill a need as the industry experiences a shortage in medical professionals.
“In our profession, we are at the largest shortage anyone’s ever seen nationwide in the last five years,” said Anthony Raffino, assistant vice president at RWJ Barnabas Health.
School staff are hoping to set students up for a lifetime of future success while cultivating a pipeline of healthcare professionals.
“Whether it’s a cardiac issue, whether it’s a violence issue or any of those things, it’s very important that we have students right here in the pipeline to fill those voids,” said Principal Jenabu Williams.
There are three technical high schools in Essex County. Essex County Executive Joseph DiVincenzo attended the ribbon-cutting ceremony for the ambulance simulator and said the goal is to expand the EMT program, possibly bringing simulators to the other two technical schools in the future.
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