Medical Tech College will partner with Parkland

READY FOR FIRST WAVE OF STUDENTS BY JAN. 1

By CAROL ROBIDOUX

Union Leader Correspondent

DERRY – A medical training college is on track to open its doors in a downtown office building by the first of the year, partnering with Parkland Medical Center which will provide internships for surgical assistants.

The New England Institute of Medical Technology is moving full steam ahead, said the school's founder Jack Roche, principal of Human Resources Dept. of New England.

The school will launch in the offices at 6 West Broadway, offering a Surgical Technology Certificate Program training students to work alongside surgeons in the operating room. Internships at Parkland Medical Center will be built into the program.

The official announcement was made during last week's Downtown Committee meeting, after Roche submitted an update read to the group by committee chair Gordon Graham.

Committee member Michael Gendron said it is an exciting prospect for the town as it moves forward in its mission to revitalize the downtown area and bring new and exciting businesses to Derry.

“This has been a dream for Jack Roche for quite a while. It's something he has wanted to do, and in the past, wasn't able to get going. We're happy we were able to support his efforts. He really made it happen. We just provided some help along the way,” Gendron said.

Maximum enrollment will be 24 students – 12 day students and 12 night students. The day program will take 1 year to complete, and the night program will take 16 months.

A link to the school's temporary website can be found at Roche's business site, www.got-hr.com.

Students completing the program will be prepared to sit for the National Board of Surgical Technology and Surgical Assisting (NBSTSA) national certification exam and will receive the designation of Certified Surgical Technologist (CST).

Certification requires mastery in 14 courses. Tuition cost has not been announced, but scholarships will be available.

NEIMT has applied for 501(c)3 tax-exempt status, and will seek grants to cover operational costs, with the goal of being ready for students as of January 1, 2011.

The nine-member board of trustees includes several local residents and business leaders, including Joseph Suozzo, owner of Suozzo Allstate Insurance Agency in Derry; Derry resident Larry Muzerall, director of business development for Sedona International of Nashua; Derry resident Mike Gallagher, Senior VP of Enterprise Bank; Phil Szalowski, owner of Broadway Chiropractic; and Jona Bostwick, who works for the VA Medical Center in Manchester. A Parkland senior administrator and surgeon, to be named, will also join the board.