Paramedic and Lead Instructor
R.L. Turner High School’s dual enrollment EMT program with Brookhaven College

“I’ve always thought about being in the medical field and even considered going to med school, but I wasn’t exactly sure what I wanted. I thought that getting EMT certification would be a good way to start out and find where I wanted to go with my career.

“I really like how they run Brookhaven’s EMS program. The program is its own entity with its own building away from the main campus. The instructors all work in the field, so they can relate to what’s important in the real world. It’s not just about passing the registry and getting your certification, but using your skills in real life.

“I would recommend Brookhaven’s program to anyone going into the EMT-paramedic field. You learn about actual situations, what our instructors have had to deal with on the job. Honestly, it’s not all critical care and ambulance calls — that’s actually a small percentage of what we do as paramedics.

“A huge part of the population who don’t have health insurance use hospitals as their everyday health care. First-time parents are notorious for calling us if the baby has a cough or something they don’t know how to deal with. A lot of this job is dealing with people and their anxieties, not just with their medical conditions.

“You have to be confident in dealing with people and be able to get someone to trust you right away. Common sense and problem solving are important, and it helps if you’re able to improvise calmly in any situation.”

Damon Johnson is a paramedic who has served as the lead instructor for the EMT Basic program in R.L. Turner High School’s Biomedical Academy for high school seniors, offering dual-credit enrollment with Brookhaven College since August 2007. He has also served as a tutor in anatomy and physiology for Brookhaven’s EMS program and has taught continuing education CPR classes for the college. He earned an associate degree in Paramedicine from Brookhaven College.