GMR is proud to announce the formation of our second mission for the year, Team Uzbekistan. Under the authority of our partner, Medical Teams International (MTI), volunteers Burke Slater and Ryan Patrick will be traveling to the country of Uzbekistan in February to teach a two week, EMS First Responder Course. Both volunteers are experienced firefighters and paramedics in the Portland, Oregon metro area. Team Leader, Slater has been a veteran of many EMS development missions abroad and looks forward to this unique opportunity. "I look forward to teaching in an EMS system that is so new, and energetic to learn from our experiences," stated Slater. "The program that we will be helping teach has been active since 2002 and we hope to offer our real world experience for their current EMS providers and those students new to the Emergency Services. We have been in contact with their Physician Advisor to coordinate the training schedule and it looks like we will get 12 days of teaching. It looks like we will be very busy in the classroom."
MTI has been involved with training in Uzbekistan for several years, developing their EMS system and emergency dispatch programs. This mission will strengthen their relationship within the region and help a country that has long struggled with widespread poverty and a lack of services.
All GMR volunteers give up their lives for several weeks, including vacation time, and personal finances to make these trips possible. If you would like to help make a difference, your contributions to their mission are tax-deductible through Global Mission Readiness. Please click here to help now. THANK YOU!
