National Ambulance Launches Emirati Recruitment Campaign in the Northern Emirates for Careers in Emergency Medical Service

Abu Dhabi, 22 May 2017: National Ambulance, together with the University of Sharjah (UOS), today announced a new training programme dedicated to UAE Nationals in the Northern Emirates to qualify as emergency pre-hospital care professionals. The one-year Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) training course will prepare Emiratis to work on the front-line of medical emergency response with National Ambulance and guarantee employment opportunities for those who successfully complete the programme.

The full-time programme, set to start in 2017-2018 academic year at the University of Sharjah’s College of Medicine and the Clinical and Surgical Training Center, will be delivered by a team of academic specialists from University of Sharjah alongside internationally trained educators from National Ambulance. The programme will take a group of 35 UAE National high school graduates from a non-clinical background through a purposely designed full-time course that will provide them with the theoretical knowledge and work experience they will need to take up employment as an EMT with National Ambulance.  

Ahmed Saleh Al Hajeri, Deputy CEO of National Ambulance, said: “In this year of giving, National Ambulance’s new EMT training programme for Emiratis reflects our commitment to support the local community and deliver the UAE's goals for the future. Together with the University of Sharjah, we are responding to demands of a growing health sector and the need for highly-trained health professionals who come from the communities where we operate. Not only are we providing education to international standards, our guarantee of future employment offers a career path to young Emiratis.”

Professor Qutayba Hamid, Vice Chancellor for the Medical and Health Sciences Colleges at University of Sharjah, said: “This programme is one of many others that are in preparation and will be released later to be a quantum leap in the strategic plan of University of Sharjah to serve the whole community in the Emirate of Sharjah in particular and UAE as a whole.”

The programme includes a number of training modules designed to build students’ knowledge and skills in providing pre-hospital emergency care during emergency situations. These are: a Foundation module, which will run at Sharjah University and taught by faculty members from UOS College of Medicine and taught by a team from National Ambulance Training Department team and an Operations module, which will be handled by National Ambulance and is designed to prepare students for the transition from academic learning to an EMT role working on the road with National Ambulance in the Northern Emirates. This will include an internship at public hospitals, ambulance placements, and working at the National Ambulance Communications Centre. Additional international courses will include; Basic Life Support, Pre-hospital Trauma Life Support Course and Paediatric Life Support Course. In addition, students will receive advanced driver training.

H.E. Dr. Amin Hussein Al Amiri, Assistant Undersecretary for Public Health Policy and Licensing, Ministry of Health said, “I want to praise this initiative and stress the support of the Ministry for such initiatives that contribute to the development of the health care sector. This program is a qualitative step in building national competencies and expertise in the field of medical services and emergency pre-hospital care, and I encourage school graduates to join the program and serve their country through this noble profession."

Suitable candidates will be selected through a competency-based process including; personal interviews, language and interpersonal communication competency, and theoretical and practical assessments. Interested candidates should visit www.nationalambulance.ae/emt or http://www.uoscstc.ae/en/Programs/Pages/CourseRegistrationForm.aspx?pcid=163 to register their interest and find out about the criteria of admission and application/ assessment process. A number of information sessions will be organized with dates to be announced at a later stage.

National Ambulance provides emergency pre-hospital care in the Northern Emirates through the dedicated 998 emergency ambulance number and smart application. Its primary task is to handle public medical emergency response and provide high standards of emergency pre-hospital care to citizens, residents and visitors across the Emirates of Sharjah, Ajman, Umm Al Quwain, Ras Al-Khaimah and Fujairah.  Last year, National Ambulance dealt with 67,000 calls received from all of the Northern Emirates.