Calif. Paramedic Program Earns Accreditation

The Hanford Sentinel, Calif.

The Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (CAAHEP) has awarded initial accreditation to the West Hills College Lemoore Emergency Medical Services—Paramedic Program.

WHCL had a comprehensive evaluation from the Committee of Accreditation of Educational Programs for Emergency Medical Services Professions, which formulates a status of public recognition recommendation that is forwarded to CAAHEP. CAAHEP then awards the accreditation for paramedic programs that meet the standards.

WHCL's program was awarded full accreditation in September, and the accreditation will be in effect through September 2023.

Kathryn DeFede, director of Health Careers and Nursing at WHCL, said the CAAHEP accreditation is important because this status ensures the program is meeting the standards of the profession.

"Quality is the mission of CAAHEP, as each individual program is reviewed measuring the programs against quality standards," DeFede said. "The standards are intended to reflect required knowledge and skills that a person needs to be able to successfully function as a licensed paramedic within our emergency medical system."

Officials said the accreditation most importantly serves a significant role for the public. Along with certification and licensure, they said accreditation helps to assure that health care personnel are well-prepared and qualified to care for those in their communities.

"WHCL health career programs are highly focused on the quality of the student's education and preparation for our industry partners," DeFede said. "We are very pleased with receiving this initial CAAHEP accreditation and thank faculty, staff, students, industry partners and the community for their hard work, support, and unwavering investment in our students and our programs."

Lester Costa, program director of three years and a paramedic for 26 years, said the program started five years ago, after which a letter of review with the accrediting agency was applied for.

Costa said the program met all the qualifications for the letter of review and for the last five years has been reporting to the accrediting agency and making sure the program was taking all the necessary steps for accreditation.

Receiving the accreditation is very important and the program must maintain accreditation to continue operating, Costa said. He said it's a good program for the local area because there's been a national and state shortage of paramedics.

"It's a way they've developed to validate our instruction and that we're meeting set national standards of instruction," Costa said.

There are currently 13 students in the program, but Costa said there is room for up to 24 students in a cohort.

Students in the paramedic program are already emergency medical technicians, which is a prerequisite to enter the 16-hours-a-week, 18-month program.

The program enhances upon what the students already know and teaches them life-saving techniques, including advanced cardiac and respiratory techniques, dealing with trauma patients, treating and assessing patients, and administering IVs and medications.

Students participate in both mannequin and live-patient training.

"They do a considerate amount and it's a considerable responsibility," Costa said. "It's pretty intensive—they're kind of thrown right in there."

WHCL will be graduating senior paramedic students in December and continuing with the fall 2018 admitted cohort with this initial CAAHEP accreditation in place.