There’s a renewed effort to get more St. Paul Fire paramedics on the streets and the department is getting creative by looking within their current ranks.

The newest group of paramedics was officially promoted at a Thursday afternoon ceremony.

Out of over 65,000 service calls to St. Paul Fire this year, at least 90% of them were medical emergencies.

“I see the paramedics on our department working tirelessly, day after day, really putting in the work and there’s just not enough of them,” Julia Cook, recently promoted paramedic, said.

Cook was a St. Paul Fire EMT in the midst of a paramedic staffing shortage.

“The only way that I knew how to help out with that was to become a paramedic myself,” Cook said.

Cook and nine other EMTs and firefighters took on the challenge to become paramedics.

The diverse class went through a one-year program with rigorous academic and hands-on training while still working full-time for the department.

“The increased demand for our EMS services is such that traditional hiring practices alone will not be enough. I asked for volunteers among my current staff to raise their hand and take on this challenge and they did. I am pleased to announce another paramedic class began earlier this month with even more applicants.” Fire Chief Butch Inks said in a statement.

Fire officials said they have 179 paramedics, which they consider a shortage, especially as calls for their services are increasing each year.

Another challenge is competing with other metro departments to fill the position.

“We are kind of essentially competing with other metro area departments and particular stations that are looking for firefighter paramedics specifically,” Steve Sampson, St. Paul Fire assistant chief, said. “It really kind of dawned on us, instead of chasing the paramedics, we need to start creating the paramedics.”

Tom Lutz, who was recently promoted, is a firefighter adding paramedic to his skill set.

“It’s excitement, it’s satisfaction, it’s a little bit fear and anxiety is there,” Lutz said. “I want to be part of the solution, not part of the problem.”

With a new patch on their uniforms, the paramedics said they’re ready to serve when crisis calls in St. Paul.

St. Paul Fire has tried this effort in the past but didn’t have the money to sustain it. Recent city funding will keep this program going for the next few years.

The department partnered with Regions Hospital EMS team and Anoka Technical College to develop and execute the curriculum.

Another class of 15 St. Paul Fire employees is training in the paramedic program, which will conclude in 10 months.