WHS staff learn to apply emergency techniques to control life threating bleeding

Post date: Oct 18, 2018 7:4:34 PM

Wells High School hosted a Stop the Bleed (STB) training for faculty and staff on Wednesday, October 10th. The program was presented by trauma staff from Maine Medical Center.

The keynote speaker, Trauma Surgeon Dr. David Ciraulo, explained that STB is a bleeding control education program to provide ordinary citizens with the skills to save lives from severe bleeding resulting from everyday accidents to terrorism. The program presented at WHS fulfilled one of the recommendations of the American College of Surgeons’ Hartford Consensus to educate the public about bleeding control.

According to bleedingcontrol.org; “In April 2013, just a few months after the active shooter disaster on December 14, 2012, at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, CT, the Joint Committee to Create a National Policy to Enhance Survivability from Intentional Mass Casualty and Active Shooter Events was convened by the American College of Surgeons (ACS) in collaboration with the medical community and representatives from the federal government, the National Security Council, the U.S. military, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and governmental and nongovernmental emergency medical response organizations, among others”.

Another speaker at WES from Maine Medical was Injury Prevention Educator Kathy Andreasen. Both she and Dr. Ciraulo spoke utilizing PowerPoint presentations and demonstrations of applying tourniquets. Doris Laslie, RN, another Maine Medical educator, was also in attendance. WHS Nurse, Pat Endsley, was the organizer of this seminar.

Following the presentations, teachers and other staff practiced correct tourniquet application as well as effective wound packing. Dr. Ciraulo pointed out that many bleeding emergencies may be effectively controlled by trained citizen responders in the community.

Last February, Wells High School hosted York County school nurses for a STB training and, as a result, many school districts including Wells-Ogunquit CSD are implementing bleeding control training district-wide.

Injury Prevention Educator Kathy Andreasen and Trauma Surgeon Dr. David Ciraulo presenting a technique to stop bleeding at Wells High School on October 10th

WHS Math teacher Andre Mercier receives tourniquet training from Trauma Surgeon Dr. David Ciraulo.