While much of rural Arkansas is struggling to staff its emergency medical services, Baxter Regional Medical Center is in a much better position.The medical center’s Director of Paramedic Services, Gerald Cantrell, says a portion of BRMC’s success in securing the needed EMTs and paramedics can be attributed to being strongly vested in the educational development of their future employees.
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Cantrell says about two years ago BRMC did experience a paramedic shortage with seven positions open on its ambulance service. He says it was a challenging time for the medical center but over a short period of time his department was fortunate to be able to recruit and hire the needed paramedics.
Cantrell says providers across the state acknowledge securing the personnel they need to provide services continues to be a struggle. He says the reason for the shortages is varied.
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Cantrell says when paramedics step into a nursing role, they do so generally with better hours and significantly better compensation.
He says the crux of the situation is there a shortage across the state, and it is likely to continue.
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Cantrell says BRMC is in a better position than many emergency medical providers across the state. He says right now the local medical center is doing really well in meeting its emergency medical services staffing needs.
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