In its ongoing commitment to provide the highest quality education to its students and to Antigua as whole, the American University of Antigua (AUA) once again held its Basic Cardiac Life Support (BCLS) Course, which began on Monday, February 6.

Limited to a capacity of one hundred participants, the course is conducted by Dr. William Caine, Professor of Microbiology; Faculty Organizer for the AUA Emergency Response Team, and a certified Paramedic at AUA. Dr. Caine is also assisted in this endeavor by Mr. Jonathan Cornelius, another certified Paramedic of ABSAR, the Antigua and Barbuda Search and Rescue Organization. As a part of the curriculum, BCLS is a required course of study and one any aspiring health care provider is required to master. Upon completion, each successful participant receives an official certification.

From its inception at AUA approximately two years ago, the BCLS course has been taught once each semester, predominantly to third- and fourth-semester students. However, an invitation has always been extended to various public service agencies in Antigua to take the course free of cost. The list of agencies which have participated is quite extensive and includes staff of the Holberton hospital, EMT’s (Ambulance Attendants), the Antigua and Barbuda Defense Force, and, more recently, the Immigration Department. Needless to say, this service may prove invaluable as it further prepares the people of Antigua to accommodate and care for the large influx of persons anticipated during the 2007 World Cup activities.

Covering a three-day period, the course comprises two days of lectures and culminates in a practical demonstration on the final day, which involves the use of mannequins, face masks, and defibrillators to administer cardiac resuscitation. On Thursday, February 9, members of the Immigration Department, Snr. Superintendents Garilyn Reis and Joseph Christopher, Jr. Superintendents Juliana Browne and Genevieve Samuel, and Grade Four Officer, Joycelyn Johnson, will have joined the ranks of locals, who have attained this esteemed certification.