For Lieutenant Omar Stout of White Plains, his interest in EMS work began when he was a child suffering from frequent asthma attacks. EMTs and paramedics often came to his aid when he needed an ambulance to take him to the Emergency Room. While he eventually outgrew the asthma, he didn’t outgrow the impression the emergency medical professionals made on him.
“I appreciated the quality of care I received, and I wanted to return that kind of care to the community,” Stout said.
Stout has been with Empress for about 3.5 years. Currently an Outreach Coordinator and an educator, he represents the company at job fairs and career days to raise awareness about EMS career opportunities. He was recently promoted to lieutenant.
He obtained his EMT education at age 17 through Code One EMS in the Bronx, becoming an EMT for SeniorCare EMS, also in the Bronx. Eventually he began working as an instructor for them.
“I learned that Empress had an earn-while-you-learn program. I read about the company through Code One. All Empress had to offer grasped my attention,” he said.
He started out with Empress as an EMT on the road and was later recruited to the Quality Assurance/Quality Improvement (QAQI) Department , where he works in clinical instruction at the Empress EMS Academy.
Participating in an outreach program at the Barack Obama School for Social Justice in Yonkers gave him the inspiration for his current role.
“We taught the students the fundamentals of EMS. After doing that, I realized that I had found my niche,” he said. “I inquired about being the Outreach Coordinator for Empress. Then I was able to go out to high schools and colleges to educate the public on EMS and our opportunities within the company. I also do outreach through the Westchester County Association at high schools in the surrounding areas of White Plains.”
He said he tells the young people he meets that EMS work is more than just a career decision.
“The field is a calling. … If you have the patience, the dedication, the drive and the empathy to want to help people, then it’s the perfect job for you,” he said.
He added that one of the things he likes most about being an EMT in the field apart from helping people is that you never know who you might meet in the process.
“There’s times that I’ve picked up many different celebrities, so it’s a rewarding part of the job as well as the patient care part of the work,” he said.
In the future, Stout hopes to broaden his reach and help more people become aware of EMS opportunities at Empress.
“I look forward to expanding our outreach and recruitment tactics,” he said.
EMS work is also central to his longer-term goals.
“I was actually thinking about paramedic school,” he said. “My long-term goal would be becoming a police officer,” he said, explaining that he is particularly interested in mixing EMS work with police work.
“When I joined EMS, I learned about ESU units (Emergency Service Units) that most municipalities have — including Yonkers, Mount Vernon and NYPD, to name a few. I learned that their trucks are staffed by EMTs and paramedics.”
He said that when he speaks to young people during his outreach efforts, he emphasizes that EMS is a great place to start on the path to a wide variety of medical careers.
“If they aspire to become a police officer or even a nurse or doctor, most of them started out as EMTs or paramedics,” he said.
When he’s not working, Stout said he enjoys trying new restaurants and foods with friends and family and getting exercise outdoors walking and running.
