Hawaii's Leeward Coast is one step closer to fixing its shortage of emergency medical workers, good news for a community that has waited a long time for local ambulance help.

• Fourteen people became the first graduates of an EMT training program run right in Waiʻanae instead of in town.
• Kapiolani Community College brought the course to the community, and the ceremony was held at the Waiʻanae Coast Comprehensive Health Center.
• The graduates grew up on the west side and will now work the same streets, which builds trust with the people they treat.
• Running the first class locally was a gamble that appears to have worked.

Outlook: More local classes are likely if this cohort sticks, slowly easing the ambulance shortage on the Leeward Coast.