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First batch of national paramedics graduate

DUBAI —The first batch of 14 UAE national paramedics has graduated from the Higher College of Technology's (HCT) Dubai-based Paramedic Programme.

Shaikh Nahyan bin Mubarak Al Nahyan, Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research and Chancellor of HCT feted the students who studied for the Higher Diploma in Paramedics at Dubai Women's and Men's Colleges. They are the first advanced life support Emirati paramedics to work on a UAE ambulance and first UAE nationals to achieve international paramedic qualifications.

In his address to the graduates, Shaikh Nahyan congratulated them and affirmed that the graduation ceremony was unique because it also celebrated the successful cooperation and effective partnership formed between the HCT and Dubai Police which resulted in a strong programme and internationally certified graduates. "The HCT strives to produce quality Emirati graduates and responds to the UAE's market needs in order to contribute to the growth and development process of the country," he said.

Lieutenant-General Dhahi Khalfan Tamim, Commander-in-Chief of Dubai Police, congratulated the graduates for their excellent performance throughout the programme and their pioneering accomplishment.

"This graduating class is a result of the persevering hard work of Dubai Police to improve the calibre of services," he said.

"The Dubai HCT is proud of the accomplishments of our first paramedic graduates. Both men and women students joined a programme that many people did not expect them to complete. They have not only completed the programme, but also have met all of the international benchmarks required of them," noted Dr Howard Reed, Senior Director at the HCT and Director of DWC.

The HCT's Advanced Life Support Paramedic Programme started four years ago in partnership with the Dubai Police, Harrisburg Area Community College in Pennsylvania, the USA, and the Dubai Ambulance Service.

It aims at Emiratisation as well as improving the existing basic ambulance service to make it an advanced and internationally recognised service in the future. "This programme is the first of its kind in the Gulf region. The graduates were trained to the highest international standards possible in this field and are fully capable of serving the needs of our country," said Major-General Tarish Eid Al Mansoori, General Manager of the General Department of Human Resources at Dubai Police.