Kalbarri St John WA volunteer’s dedication recognised with scholarship to boost emergency care skills

A St John WA volunteer from Kalbarri is one of six volunteers to be awarded scholarships to study emergency pre-hospital health care. Claire Stringer will undertake a Diploma of Emergency Health Care with the Australian Paramedical College after being awarded a scholarship by St John. For seven years Ms Stinger has volunteered with St John WA, and also works as a administrative assistant at the Kalbarri Health Centre The British-born local arrived in Kalbarri in 2005 and has felt a strong sense of responsibility to her town ever since. Ms Stinger has been involved in cyclone Seroja relief efforts since the disaster hit in April 2021. “I value strong community and social connection and a sense of belonging,” she said. “This is why I help to engage as much as I can whenever possible.” Ms Stringer said she hopes to earn a degree in paramedicine after completing her diploma. St John WA Head of Country Ambulance Operations Justin Fonte congratulated Ms Stringer and the other recipients. “Our volunteers have already shown they have an amazing aptitude for emergency pre-hospital care and this nationally recognised diploma will give them the language to communicate much of the skills St John already delivers to its country patients,” he said. Director of Education at the Australian Paramedical College, Simon Sawyer, said the college was eager to contribute to WA’s ambulance sector by training the volunteers. “We look forward to delivering exceptionally well-trained emergency health care diploma students to WA’s ambulance sector upon completion of their studies,” Dr Sawyer said.