It's hard to believe, but our last week in Mastatal is ending. We have been pushing the students particularly hard, and they deserved a little surprise break. On Wednesday, they prepared for an extended overnight scenario in the forest. With all of their medical and rescue supplies, they dutifully hiked into the night. They were told to build a big fire, which they accomplished with their survival kits and skills. Then they were told to come get the bodies, which turned out to be some wonderfully marinating steak that our Argentinian-native instructor, Fernando, had prepared for everyone along with his homemade sausages. The relief was palpable.
But brief. The next day we resumed in earnest with a prolonged scenario by the river. There, students found a bloody rock in the stream, which led them to screams up river, which brought them to a patient with a profuse arterial bleed (post machete) and another with a serious head injury. The students moved their patients out of dangerous positions, stabilized their wounds, set up shelters, built fires and prepared for the night. They confirmed their locations with map and GPS. All while it was pouring rain (a good reminder that although this is the dry season, we are in the rain forest).
The next day (yesterday), we elevated the tension a bit further. Keeping to our promise of offering increasingly challenging and complex scenarios, the students were alerted during their breakfast that they were responding to a mass casualty incident. They gathered their scant supplies and prepared, knowing no other details.
It's funny to see good plans and preparation stutter and adapt to unexpected situations. That is the life of a competent EMT and something we train for at Aerie. You will never see it all and will never stop taking what you have learned and using it to handle the crisis at hand. This crisis happened to be school full of elementary-aged students and their cook that were all exposed to toxic levels of carbon monoxide. Our students were expecting English-speaking adults in a wilderness setting, but they regrouped and managed the scene amazingly well. Almost every EMT has at some level a base fear of pediatric patients. Nobody likes to see children hurt. Parents, other caregivers and witnesses are often frantic. And suddenly all eyes are on the EMT to make things better. Add language barriers and the difficulties increase exponentially. Our students moved their patients to safe ground, triaged and cared for all 11 while arranging for immediate evacuation.
Of course, we are working with scenarios. And while these are some of our most powerful teaching tools, they have their limitations. A completely unique aspect of the Semester is the real-life clinical time students experience during the program. And, starting Monday, they will set up and run a free health clinic in the local indigenous community of Zapaton. Our medical director is arriving tomorrow to help us set this up. During the clinic, students will assess dozens of local children, parents and grandparents, communicate their findings to the doctor, and then watch and learn as he assesses and manages the patients. The days conclude with round-table discussions of patients, their histories, physical exams and diagnoses. We can't wait!
