First IPP and CALD uni grads In November, Queensland Ambulance Service celebrated its first university graduates from the Indigenous Paramedic Program (IPP) and the Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CALD) Paramedic Program, which enable students to complete their full Bachelor of Paramedic Science degree. Both program models support several academic milestones allowing cadets to choose their own path to provide healthcare to community. QAS Cultural Safety Unit’s Executive Manager Patricia Murray said the IPP began in 2012 to provide education and employment opportunities to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, while building trust and safety with our Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities. “The CALD Paramedic Program was created in 2016 and shares the same ethos and education framework as the IPP, but focuses on empowering peoples from other culturally diverse communities,” Trish said.
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Both programs were updated in 2018, in partnership with Central Queensland University, to maintain training currency and to include the mandated requirements to complete a Bachelor of Paramedic Science. “When the IPP began in 2012, six cadets were stationed across three communities in Far North Queensland and Thursday Island,” Trish said. “Now our program supports 45 cadets across 29 Queensland communities and we’re still growing,” Trish said. “Before university degrees were mandatory, eight cadets graduated as paramedics through the IPP and all now proudly represent the QAS, some now in leadership roles and supervisory positions, building capacity in their communities and leaving a legacy for the next generation.” IPP cadet Jessee Day, and CALD cadet Tareta Siakisini (known to his friends and colleagues as T.J) are QAS’s first to graduate with their Bachelor of Paramedic Science qualification. Deputy Commissioner Dee Taylor-Dutton presented them with their red paramedic epaulettes and caduceus and said this was a proud moment for QAS.
Summer 2021–22
“To see the Indigenous Paramedic Program and the CALD Paramedic Program continue to succeed is tremendous,” Dee said. “These officers are already fabulous role models in their communities, and they are inspiring future generations from our Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities and Samoan community. “These two Programs are helping the QAS provide culturally appropriate and responsive services for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and Samoan people in our communities, which is pivotal towards closing the gap in health outcomes.” Jessee started with the QAS in 2016 working in patient transport in Rockhampton and was devoted to becoming a paramedic. He joined the Indigenous Paramedic Program at South Brisbane Station in 2018. Trish said right from the start, Jessee worked hard to fulfil his dream.
