November 10, 2011
Every second week of November, the National Collegiate Emergency Medical Services Foundation (NCEMSF) recognizes campus-based EMTs for their services to campus communities as part of the EMS week celebration. Founded in 1993, the NCEMSF is committed to “creating a safer, healthier environment on college and university campuses through the support, promotion and advocacy of campus-based emergency medical services.” This year marks the ninth annual National Collegiate EMS week, and the College takes this week to honor the Hamilton College Emergency Medical Services (HCEMS) for their dedication to serving the Hamilton Community in times of need.
The HCEMS program started in the early 1980s, when students with different medical training backgrounds grouped together to assist patients and direct them to the health center for treatments. At that time, the health center was open 24 hours a day and 7 days a week in order to provide full coverage for the Hamilton community. In 1993, however, health services at Hamilton were restructured, and the result was that the health center was no longer a 24/7 operation. The need for off-hour EMS coverage gave rise to the restructure of the HCEMS program, as it changed from a loose student-organized service to a structured NY state agency, and all members of the HCEMS were then required to be certified by the state. The newly structured HCEMS uses “to provide pre-hospital care to the Hamilton community” as its new mission.
Currently, HCEMS has 22 student members, including seniors Hailey Bobin, Kayla Brendon, Lauren Brousseau, Sarah Dreyer-Oren, Matthew Farrington, Jeannie Folan, James Kruger, Sara M. Miller and Lindsay Shankman; juniors Alvin Wu, Jamie Azdair, Ethan Ayres, Melanie Hundt, Conner Polet, Susannah Spero and Asheley Sutton; and sophomores Phil Conkling, Jenna Durkee, Tara Hansen, Rob Hayden, Jackie Jasuta and James Stanell. These student EMTs work one or two shifts a week, each which last for 10-17 hours. Weekday shifts are determined at the beginning of the semester, while weekend shifts are assigned on a rotational basis. Each EMT is expected to work 20-30 hours a week, depending on whether he or she is scheduled for a weekend shift or not.
Three EMTs are on call during any given shift. When an EMT is on call, he or she cannot leave campus and is not allowed to drink alcohol during the 12-hour period before his/her shift starts. When Campus Safety receives a call, the officer will use the wireless intercom to notify all three EMTs on call. All three members respond to the call and immediately head to the location of the incident. Upon arriving at the scene, the EMTs do a quick assessment of the patient and determine whether the patient needs to go to the hospital. The EMTs also need to file paperwork after each incident and the health center usually follows up with the patient afterwards. If there are multiple calls at once, the three EMTs split up into groups depending on the condition of the patients in need, and the decision is made by the designated crew chief for each shift. The most frequency calls that the EMTs respond to are related to personal injuries such as broken bones, cuts and sprains. In contrast to the common conception, alcohol related calls are not the most frequent, even though they are most visible to observers.
No one can simply sign up to become an EMT. The application process is highly selective, which requires a formal application, as well as one-on-one and group interviews, where student applicants are evaluated on many grounds. When asked to describe an ideal candidate for the HCEMS program, Diann Lynch, director of the HCEMS, pointed out, “First, the student must have a keen interest in doing this. If a student wants to be an EMT simply because it looks good on his resume, he will not be selected. Second, the student needs to be personable and is able to work well with the team. Leadership skills are important and a sense of humor is also needed to go through some of the tough situations on the job. Finally, the student needs to have good communication skills so that they can communicate well with the patients.”
Once a student is accepted in the HCEMS program, they must enroll in a certification course run by the mid-state EMS training personnel. The EMTs-to-be receive a total of 167 hours training in the spring semester, which includes 4-hour meetings twice a week, and eight Saturdays on which they attend labs to work on practical skills in simulated emergency situations. When they are finished with the class, they have to take an exam for the class, as well as a state skills exam and a state written exam to be certified by NY State. Once the EMTs are certified, they still need to take weekly quizzes to ensure that they keep up with their skills.
Many people don’t realize how much the student EMTs can do upon finishing their training. They are capable of much more than first aid; they are certified to provide basic life support. There are a variety of things the student EMTs can do, and technically they have the same skills as the EMTs who travel in ambulances and work in hospitals. Their training enables them to do many things such as medical and trauma assessment, airway management, splint treatment, CPR, permission to give patients certain medications and, believe or not, deliver babies.
Many student EMTs, after they graduate from Hamilton, continues to serve their local communities in various ways. According to Lynch, some stay in emergency medicine, some get degree in emergency management and become paramedics and some just stay involved and volunteer for the home community as they go on with their lives.
“They grow up a bit from this experience too,” said Lynch. “The EMTs are taking care of people in the same age group as them. Some take care of their friends, and it can sometimes be emotionally attached. They cannot talk about what happens at a call with anyone else except among themselves. They really mature a lot from the experience.”
Sara Miller ’12, who was elected as a student EMT officer in charge of equipments, agreed with what Lynch described. “It makes me a more confident person,” said Miller. “It gives me a lot of confidence every day. Plus, people I work with became really good friends of mine.”
“It becomes a very personal accomplishment,” said Kayla Brenden’12, who was also elected as a student EMT officer and who was in charge of scheduling. “The EMT experience has become second to academic for me. It’s what I get the most out of my experience at Hamilton.”
What’s more praiseworthy and commendable is that the EMTs are volunteers who do not get paid for their services. To many members of the HCEMS, the lack of compensation is an important part of their job. “We do it just because we want to help people,” said Miller. “I’ve always wanted to be that person in a situation who people could rely on.”