Students get hands-on training

A group of New Prague High School students received some hands-on training in emergency medicine last week.

Children’s Hospital sent its Mobile Training Center to New Prague, and students in the MARS (Mastering Academics and Real-World Skills) program had the opportunity to see what it’s like to work in an emergency room.

Using a simulator, the students were presented with two scenarios and under the guidance of staff members who explained what was happening, they were able to "treat" the patient using various technologies and procedures.

In one scenario, a simulated patient, nicknamed "Jeff," presented as a 5-year-old male with asthma. Students were told how emergency room personnel would assess the patient. The students hooked up electrodes to Jeff while Suzanne Nelson, a registered nurse and simulation specialist with Children’s Hospital talked them through the various phases of the emergency.

After administering a dose of albuterol, the simulated patient still showed problems, and an IV of predisone was added. The patient continued to exhibit problems and eventually stopped breathing altogether, turning a shade of blue. Nelson guided them through the intubation process and students had to manually help the patient breathe for the rest of the simulation while others administered other drugs, checked vital signs and performed other duties.

There were groups of......

To see more on this story pick up the April 6, 2017 print edition of The New Prague Times.