Last Thursday, October 21, our Fundamentals in Biomedical Sciences Class was visited by two EMT ladies from the University of South Alabama. They kindly took their time to come speak to us about the immediate treatment and transportation of a patient with a spinal injury. The pair demonstrated, on one of my fellow classmates, how to put a patient on a spine board in order to transport them to the nearest hospital. The first step, as they explained, was to C-Spine the patient, or use your hands to keep the patients neck stabilized. Next, they showed us how we might find and apply an appropriately sized neck brace for the patient. Then, they showed us how to safely move the patient onto the spine board using 3 people ( 1 to hold C-spine and 2 to move the patient). Next, they showed us how to place head immobilizers on each side of the patients head. Finally, we were shown how to use spider straps to hold the patient onto the board.
While they we completing this process, they were also telling us how we might speak to the patient. This includes asking about the incident that caused their injury or asking them to wiggle their fingers and toes. They emphasized to us that we must frequently check their pulse and how they recommend to mark where we find to pulse to help out the ER nurses. After their example, we were able to try the process ourselves! It was a lot more difficult than it looked, but it was a fun and informative experience. The young ladies were helpful, informative, and entertaining. I was able to learn a lot of valuable information through the experience, and I hope they choose to come back to teach us again!
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