Slated for Success

The lessons Rebecca Slate is learning as a biochemistry major at Saint Vincent College have put her on track for a career as a pediatric emergency room doctor. Her interest in medicine was sparked five years ago when Slate, then 16 years old, became the youngest state-certified emergency medical technician in Pennsylvania.

“My high school was shut down because of COVID-19, and I was really bored,” said Slate, a junior from Boswell, a rural area near Johnstown. “I learned that you could become an EMT at 16 through an online course, so that’s what I did. I got my EMT license three days after I got my driver's license.”

While in high school, Slate worked for the ambulance division of the Boswell Volunteer Fire Department. By her senior year, she’d been promoted to assistant commander of emergency medical services. 

“Being an EMT definitely can be intimidating,” Slate said. “My first couple of months, I couldn't sleep, I couldn't do anything. I was like, ‘Oh, my gosh, we're gonna get a call, I'm not gonna know what to do, and something bad is gonna happen.’ But that never happened because I had good people to guide me.”

Slate will never forget the day her crew got a call at four in the morning for an obstetric emergency. The parents had tried to get to the hospital in time, but Baby Rylee was in a hurry to be born. “Their truck was parked on the side of a road,” Slate recalled. “When we got there, Rylee already was on her way. I was the first person to ever hold her. I went to school that morning and told my first-period teacher I had just helped deliver his niece. Yeah, it was a crazy day.”

The Boswell ambulance crew often was called for what are termed pediatric psych transports—taking children with mental health needs to specialized care facilities. “Those are the ones that kind of hit me the hardest,” Slate said. “It’s so rewarding working with children. That’s what made me want to be a pediatric doctor.”

Slate chose Saint Vincent because of its strong reputation for science instruction, small class sizes, and high matriculation rates to health profession schools. She’s prepping for the Medical College Admission Test—Slate’s goal is to get into Duquesne University’s medical school—and is beginning to plan her senior year research project.

Even amid her hectic schedule at Saint Vincent, Slate finds time to work as an EMT for the Greensburg-based Mutual Aid Ambulance Service. “I plan to keep doing it as long as I can,” she said. “You have to be in the mindset of where you are in the moment. When I'm at work [as an EMT], I'm in work mode. When I'm at school, I'm in school mode.”