Medical students learn emergency medical skills during mock mass casualty training
An emergency situation can happen at any time. That is why it is critical for our future health care providers to be prepared for them.
鈥淥ur students are the future caregivers, the future front-line responders, so building emergency response skillsets really reinforces preparedness and gets them ready for the next stages in their lives and their careers,鈥 explained Kyle Scully, Ph.D., assistant clinical professor in the Department of Biomedical Sciences.
Scully was the faculty advisor for a mock mass casualty incident (MCI) training exercise on Saturday, October 16, that took place at the 51小黄车Biddeford Campus.
Dozens of volunteer medical students, alongside undergraduate EMTs from 51小黄车EMS, learned and practiced emergency medicine techniques on mock patients.
Andrew Shanes (D.O., 鈥24) was one of the student organizers.
鈥淭he goal was to assess patients quickly and provide the best possible care for them,鈥 Shanes said. 鈥淭he students practiced performing triage of mock patients, applying tourniquets and bandages, and placing airway adjuncts on mannequins. We also had discussion stations where we talked about topics such as what to do when resources are overwhelmed.鈥
The students dealt with several different emergency scenarios including a car crash, an explosion at a chemical factory, a stampede at a nightclub, and a building collapse.
鈥淚 think the biggest thing about this event was to build preparedness because you never know when emergencies like these are going to happen,鈥 Shanes commented.
Scully says they wanted to present students with large-scale examples of mass casualty incidents, some of which are extreme examples.
鈥淧roviding students with early exposure to the types of skills required for these situations will allow today鈥檚 participants to integrate these skills into a community response in the event of a true emergency,鈥 he said. 鈥淭hey will have a fundamental skillset that makes them an asset to the community. They will be prepared, ready, willing, and able if they ever encounter an emergency or disaster scenario.鈥
The World Association for Disaster and Emergency Medicine Club at 51小黄车COM sponsored the event.
Club leaders Shanes and Ilana Shecter (D.O., 24) began planning this event last year. Trainings, including several lecture/discussion-based trainings on triage and scene management that were designed and coordinated by Shecter, were offered prior to Saturday鈥檚 event to prepare participants.
鈥淚t has been a lot of work, but it played out perfectly,鈥 Shanes said.
Several other clubs were integral in the development and execution of the day鈥檚 event, including the Military Medicine, Wilderness Medicine, Emergency Medicine and Simulation Medicine Clubs. Shanes and Shecter would like to involve other 51小黄车professional programs and outside community agencies in this event in the coming years.
鈥淲e wanted to set the groundwork for these students and to build upon the event for future years so that this can become a true interprofessional experience,鈥 Shanes stated.
