McDowellEms.com

McDowell County EMS

Training Division

"Committed to providing prehospital care providers and citizens the most professional and comprehensive training available"

Dr. Edward St. Bernard
Medical Director

Major Eugene Edwards CCEMT-P
Training Officer

Captain Donnie Tipton CCEMT-P
Quality Assurance Officer

Lt. Steve Wilkerson
Field Training Officer
Assistant QA Officer

Lt. David Stepp CCEMT-P
Field Training Officer
Assistant QA Officer

Lt. David Cable CCEMT-P
Field Training Officer

Marvin Hancock NREMT-P
Field Training Officer

Emergency Medicine changes very rapidly. Over the past several years great advances have been made in the field of emergency medicine. Paramedics are now doing procedures in the field that several years ago would have seemed impossible.
McDowell County EMS is committed to providing care that remains on the cutting edge of emergency medicine. The training division at EMS is responsible for training all EMS employees and overseeing the first responder program for McDowell County. Every employee of McDowell County EMS is required to attend a minimum of 36 hours of continuing education training each year. McDowell EMS works very closely with McDowell Technical Community College to meet our agency's training needs. Presently Captain Eugene Edwards serves as the agency's training officer. Captain Edwards is responsible for overseeing all aspects of training for all employees. He is assisted by 4 field training officers who are tasked with the responsibility of providing training on-shift as well as training new employees.

McDowell County EMS holds monthly training for all employees on the 3rd Monday night of each month. Training classes are conducted in the William Harold Smith Building located on the campus of McDowell Tech. Class times are 6:30pm-9:30pm. All classes are open to all emergency service personnel. McDowell EMS also conducts monthly training for all first responders and EMT's of county fire departments and rescue squad. This training is conducted on the 4th Thursday night of each month from 6:30-8:30pm at McDowell Tech.

Employees of McDowell County EMS hold many national and advanced certifications. The training division is responsible for seeing that yearly training requirements for each certification are met. Our agency is in the process of developing a critical care program that will enhance the level of care provided to our patients. Presently we have a total of 10 Critical Care Paramedics who have successfully completed the Critical Care Program through the University of Maryland Baltimore County. Our service also recognizes National Registry as being a symbol of excellence in patient care. Presently our agency has 11 Nationally Registered Paramedics.


Our agency prides itself on the level of care provided to our patients. We ask that you take a few moments to view our protocols and see for yourself the level of care McDowell County EMS provides. Please contact us if you have any questions about the training division or if we could be of any assistance to you.


McDowell County EMS
Training Division
60 East Court Street
Marion, NC 28752
828-652-3982
Email: eedwards@mcdowellems.com