Pitt-Bradford is partnering with SHRS to offer an emergency medicine degree

With support from the School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, the University of Pittsburgh at Bradford is launching a new four-year emergency medicine degree.

Emergency medicine students will graduate ready to become certified paramedics, who have more training than emergency management technicians and are able to provide advanced life support and perform procedures such as providing oral and intravenous medication, monitoring electrocardiograms and performing tracheotomies.

"I think that this is an excellent opportunity for a true academic partnership using the resources available on and around our regional campus, as well as those on the Pittsburgh campus, to create an excellent learning experience for students," said Thomas E. Platt, associate dean for academic partnerships in the School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences.

About 25% of graduates from the School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences' emergency medicine program go on to work in the field of emergency medicine. The degree is also a popular preparation for medical school, which is where another 25% of the School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences' emergency medicine graduates end up.

Students graduating with an emergency medicine degree will complete a minimum of 544 hours of caregiving alongside mentors. And because they will have been able to become emergency medical technicians along the way, students can spend summers working with ambulance services to gain even more experience before undertaking the highly competitive medical school application process.

"This degree allows students to use their passion for helping others," said Doug Graham, instructor of emergency medical services and health sciences at Pitt-Bradford. "It offers students hands-on experience in the classroom and real-world settings as an EMT and paramedic to better prepare them for graduate school or provide them with a certification to begin working even before graduation."

The degree will also provide excellent training for students wishing to become physician assistants, occupational therapists, physical therapists or athletic trainers, according to Graham, who said his own emergency medical technician certification made him feel more confident as a caregiver.

Training more health professionals at a rural university also encourages those students to return to the area to practice. According to the Pennsylvania Office of Rural Health, 26% of Pennsylvania's rural population live in federally designated Health Professional Shortage Areas.

"Our role training health care workers for underserved areas is something that we take very seriously," said Rick Esch, president of Pitt-Bradford. "We are excited to work with the University of Pittsburgh to provide this new opportunity in our region, and we hope students will consider returning to work in underserved areas when their training is complete."

Emergency medicine students will spend their first two years at Pitt-Bradford taking generalized college classes in basic subjects and a four-credit course to become an EMT, a requirement of admission into the degree program.

Once accepted, students will spend their junior year completing and obtaining a paramedic certification and gaining real-world experience alongside emergency medical professionals. Senior year will be dedicated to critical care medicine and related courses.

Prospective students can begin working on their general college courses in fall 2025 while pursuing the pre-emergency medicine program. The junior and senior years of training will begin in fall 2027.

For more information, contact Doug Graham at djg86[at] pitt.edu.

Photography by Matthew Lester

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