Jean Brissault is a nationally certified emergency medical technician or EMT. He recently showed us what his job entails. It’s high stress, but he loves it.

Jean’s passion for the medical field came after a tragic event in Haiti. A woman, who was like a sister to him, was sick and couldn’t access medical care.

“She was diabetic. And she couldn’t afford to go to the hospital, and then she died. And from there, I was like, ‘I want to become a doctor and help people even if things are hard.’”

After graduating from high school, Jean heard about the EMT program at the Philadelphia Job Corps Life Science Institute. He completed the program in seven months. Now, he’s working full time for an ambulance company near Philadelphia.

“Every day it’s like new things,” Jean says, “different things, like high priority and everything.”

Jean says Job Corps was crucial to his success.

“They support you in every way,” he explains referring to the staff at the Philadelphia Job Corps Center.

Next, he’ll go to college to become a physician’s assistant. It’s going to be a lot of work, but he’s up to the task.

“Where I come from, I come from Haiti. And, I mean, in Haiti things are hard. You’ve got to be strong. I came here with the right mindset and I came here for a purpose—that’s what I want to do, that’s what will do.”