FDNY Holds Graduation Ceremony for 164 EMTS

October 2, 2019

The Department held a graduation ceremony for 164 Emergency Medical Technicians on Wednesday, October 2nd at the Christian Cultural Center in Brooklyn.

“These new EMTs will join the ranks of those already responding to hundreds of thousands of medical emergencies across all five boroughs, bringing their expert skills and medical training to every call,” said Commissioner Nigro. “They are truly dedicated, and very quickly, will be making a difference in the lives of New Yorkers across the city.”

FDNY Emergency Medical Technicians graduating from FDNY‘s probationary training program have trained for 14 – 16 weeks (depending on EMT certification when hired) at the EMS Academy. They have reached the highest standards of pre-hospital care and endured rigorous training in every aspect of their jobs as Basic Life Support providers. Their comprehensive curriculum includes training in anatomy and physiology, multi-systems trauma, emergency vehicle operations, counter terrorism task force drills, mass casualty incidents, and specialized medical and trauma scenarios. They have developed their critical lifesaving techniques even further, with field experience during their clinical rotations.

“EMTs are out there doing difficult work on the front lines for this Department, and we all know how critical you are to the FDNY’s mission of protecting our city,” said Chief of Department John Sudnik.

U.S Navy Veteran Probationary EMT Gina Liandros is one of five US Armed Forces veterans who graduated today.

“I was inspired to join the Navy after the attacks on September 11th. This is my city and I wanted to feel like I could protect it. During my time, I did two tours in the Persian Gulf – Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom – and received several medals for my accomplishments. It was amazing and an incredible honor. I knew after that experience, I wanted to join the FDNY,” Liandros said. “It was my calling. I wanted to do more for the community that I grew up in. During one of my ride-alongs, I had a ROSC (Return of Spontaneous Circulation) save. This was my first save and I have my instructors to thank for that. Because of them I felt prepared and confident. It was great watching the EMTs and Paramedics in action. They talked me through everything. It was amazing knowing that this individual was able to get another chance at life because of us. I wanted to make a positive change in someone’s life, and this job is the best way for me to do that.”

Several foreign languages are spoken by this diverse group of new Paramedics, including: Arabic, Mandarin, Cantonese, Fuzhounese, French, Spanish, African dialects, Greek, Hebrew, Korean, Italian, Portuguese, Turkish and Haitian Creole.

The new EMTs will be assigned to units throughout New York City.

“It was such a privilege to learn from the instructors as the EMS Academy. They are so knowledgeable and my classmates and I learned so much from them. Overall, the Academy was a great experience. My squad and I would all meet up for review sessions and we put in the time on the weekends as well. They were such a big help to me,” said Paul Cresci, who graduated today as Academic Achiever of his class. “My father, Paul Cresci is retired FDNY Chief of Safety and he is the reason I wanted to be a part of this Department. His father was also in the Department so it runs in the family. I wanted a job where I could help people every day and be a part of something bigger than myself.”

For photos from the event: click here.