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Open house: St. John Ambulance looking for more first responders in Cowichan

St. John Ambulance needs more first responders, and an open house is scheduled for Sunday to get those interested through the door.

St. John Ambulance needs more first responders, and an open house is scheduled for Sunday to get those interested through the door.

St. John Ambulance is recruiting volunteers for the Medical First Responder Division. The open house is on Feb. 5 from 10 a.m. – 12 p.m. at the Cowichan Valley Training Center at 169 Craig St. in downtown Duncan.

“If you have a Standard First Aid, OFA2 or OFA3, this organization will give you an opportunity to use your first aid skills, “said divisional administration officer Glyn Trafford. “Too often people take advanced first aid and then rarely have a significant patient contact in three years.”

Members receive training as medical first responders, continuing education modules and uniforms. Members must be over 18 and able to pass a criminal record check. They also have to commit to a minimum of 60 hours of volunteer time per year.

“That’s not difficult to do between training, meetings and public duties,” said Trafford.

The division provides community support to more than 35 events annually. Many events would not run without St. John volunteers because commercial first aiders are expensive to hire.

Certified paramedics will also benefit from being members. The volunteer time and continuing medical education training provides CME hours for BCAS paramedics. In many divisions, they assist with the advanced training and bring experience to the team. St. John has a reciprocity agreement for paramedics.

For information contact Glyn Trafford at dao.d1054@bc.sja.ca.