Some Toledo police officers are taking part in first-of-its-kind accelerated training in basic EMT skills at Owens Community College. The program takes nearly four months, with officers receiving more than 150 hours of hands-on classroom and field training.
Officials from Mercy Health’s EMS Division and the Four County Career Center near Archbold conduct the training. Field training includes riding along with the Toledo Fire & Rescue Department and shadowing emergency room medical personnel.
Participating officers receive tactical bags containing critical supplies such as tourniquets, splints, chest seals, and bandages. Funding for the bags and their contents comes from the Mercy Foundation and the Toledo Police Foundation.
“Oftentimes, these officers are the first ones to respond to a scene,” says Ryan Savage, a member of the Toledo Police Foundation board. “So giving them the equipment to confidently go to that scene, administer that aid until the EMTs show up, was absolutely a great opportunity for us to pursue.”
