JAX NEMT Driver Training and Safety Standards

Screening comes first. Drivers pass a criminal background check, a motor vehicle record review, and drug testing before hire. We look for a clean driving history, but we also interview for temperament — patience with an older rider who needs an extra minute is not optional in this work.

Training then covers the parts of the job that are not driving: passenger assistance and safe transfer technique, wheelchair loading and four-point securement, lift operation and inspection, stretcher handling, bariatric transfer safety, mobility equipment handling, and how to help a rider through steps, thresholds and unfamiliar building entrances.

Drivers are also trained in defensive driving for medical passengers — smoother braking, wider turns, longer following distance — plus emergency procedures, first aid and CPR awareness, infection control and vehicle sanitizing between trips, and HIPAA-level discretion about anything they see or hear during a trip.

Vehicles are inspected on a schedule and cleaned between transports, with lifts and securement hardware checked regularly. Refresher training runs throughout the year, and dispatch reviews any rider feedback with the driver directly. If a rider ever has a concern about a driver, one phone call to dispatch puts it in front of a person who can act on it.