Scottsbluff, NE – Regional West Air Link Paramedic, Howard McCormick, NREMT-P, FP-C, of Sedgwick, Colo. was recently recognized by the Board for Critical Care Transport Certification as one of 1,200 nationally certified flight paramedics.

The board is a non-profit agency that is dedicated to improving the standard of care in transportation of critically ill or injured patients and administers flight paramedic certification exams

To successfully complete the advanced level exam, paramedics must demonstrate a wide breadth of knowledge, characteristic of an experienced, highly competent provider. The exam covers multiple pre-hospital care topics and the advanced intensive care of the critically injured and sick patients.

In addition to his duties as a flight paramedic with Air Link, McCormick is actively involved with the Ambulance service and serves as the Coroner in Sedgwick County. McCormick ranches and resides in Sedgwick County, Colo. with his wife, Michelle. He has been involved in emergency pre-hospital care since 1986, beginning as a first responder, achieving the advanced paramedic licensure in 1997. His special interests include helping other people to help them selves and improving the quality of rural pre-hospital care through training and education.

Covering over 23,000 square miles in Nebraska alone, the helicopter is an integral part of the only comprehensive trauma system west of Kearney. The system serves important volunteer and paid ground crews, and medical staff in Critical Access Hospitals in the panhandle, eastern Wyoming, southern South Dakota and northeastern Colorado, linking them to the referral center and its specialists at Regional West Medical Center.

Regional West Health Services, with over 1,800 employees, provides comprehensive and innovative health care services for the people and communities of western Nebraska and the neighboring states of Colorado, South Dakota and Wyoming. With over 110 active physicians, 95 percent of whom are board certified or board eligible, plus an additional 25 consulting specialists, we offer care that spans more than 30 medical specialties. Regional West Medical Center, a subsidiary of Regional West Health Services, is accredited by The Joint Commission and is one of three Level II Trauma Centers in the state of Nebraska.