ENHANCING CONTINUOUS LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES FOR PARAMEDICS

Health professionals who are first responders to the sick and injured in the field, paramedics play a critical role in emergency care. With the launch of the new National Paramedic Training and Education roadmap, they can now look forward to multiple pathways to success.

This was a point made by Senior Minister of State for Defence Ong Ye Kung at the unveiling of the roadmap on 16 Oct at Nee Soon Camp.

In line with the national SkillsFuture movement, it is a multi-agency effort led by the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) and the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) that charts the many pathways paramedics can take to pursue professional upgrading and deepen industry-relevant skills and knowledge regardless of their educational background.

The roadmap is also supported by the Ministry of Education, Ministry of Health, and the Singapore Workforce Development Agency.

Highlighting the SAF's push to certify skills that servicemen have learnt, Mr Ong said: "By enhancing existing courses and by introducing new courses, we are creating a vocational pathway that goes all the way now to a degree for the (paramedic) vocation."

Some of the training and education programmes developed under this newly launched roadmap include an enhanced emergency medical specialist course by the SAF as well as new diploma programmes in paramedicine. In July this year, SIM University (UniSIM) offered a Minor programme in Paramedicine and Emergency Response with the Bachelor of Science in Biomedical Engineering.

Speaking to about 100 paramedics from the SAF, SCDF and private companies, Mr Ong noted the open enrollment policy of the diploma and degree programmes launched under the roadmap. "Throughout the entire pathway, (institutes like) Nanyang Polytechnic (NYP) and UniSIM did not impose a Grade Point Average requirement.

"The pathway is not shut off to you because of bad results from a long time ago in the past I hope that this pathway will help you fulfil your passion."

Chief of the SAF s Medical Corps, Colonel (COL) (Dr) Tang Kong Choong agreed, adding: "We are delighted to be able to establish a long-term, professional programme which strengthens the competencies of our paramedics and better equips them with the medical knowledge and practical skills to support the SAF's wide range of operations."

Along with the launch of the roadmap, six institutions - the SAF, SCDF, Institute of Technical Education, NYP, UniSIM, and the Justice Institute of British Columbia - signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to cement the collaboration between employers of paramedics and education institutions to encourage skills mastery in the field.

Present at the event today were Chief of Defence Force Major-General (MG) Perry Lim, Signing and Witnessing Officers from the six signatories of the MOU, as well as pioneers of paramedic training in Singapore