Author: Linni Kral
“The beer is gone,” clips a voice on Campus Safety officer Joe Novak’s radio. It is 1 a.m. on a Saturday night and for Novak, this means the night is winding down. April 21 has been a quiet one, with few off-campus parties and most activity contained at the Doctors and Nurses dance.
The Weekly observed the Oxy nightlife through a different lens this weekend on a Campus Safety ride-along, part of the new Emergency Medical Service (EMS) training program. These ride-alongs have been set up for EMS trainees to get a feel for situations they may encounter on the job.
“The program will be fully launched by the fall,” Teddy Zou (sophomore) said. “There are very large holes that I still need to fill in before the insurance will be upgraded.” It was Zou who brought the program to campus and he hoped to see it running on its own by now, but minor glitches arose with funding and insurance.
“We looked at training people on campus but that was too expensive,” Zou said. Funding is currently provided by the ASOC, though students must pay for their off-campus training in order to get certified. Pasadena City College (PCC) offers training, which involves attending class from 8 a.m.-5 p.m. every Saturday.
One student, Tasha Toruno (senior) has been a certified Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) for three years now and has worked at an off-site ambulance company for two years. Toruno began working 12 hours a week for Ambuserve Ambulance after receiving her certification and now works 48 hours a week.
“You kind of get addicted,” Toruno said “It sounds a lot worse than it is, but you just work two 24-hour shifts.” During these shifts, Toruno is on-call, which means she can sleep unless they receive an emergency call. Toruno is attending nursing school next year and is completing her Senior Comprehensive Project on EMS programs on college campuses. This past Saturday was her first ride-along.
“It’s mostly just drunk kids on weekend nights,” Toruno said. “People who should go to the hospital for observation, but nothing life-threatening.” Students do not need to be pre-med to get certified or participate in the program. Zou is an Economics major, Toruno is an Urban & Environmental Policy major and other EMTs vary from undeclared to Sociology majors. The Program Guidelines state that the Oxy EMS program is meant to create an opportunity for any students to become EMTs and gain field experience while safeguarding other students’ health. “There are ten students involved right now, and it’s not limited to that issue of majors,” Zou said.
The ride-alongs kicked off the weekend of April 13 and one trainee, Stephen Ortega (sophomore), witnessed an emergency medical situation where a student punched a light fixture and was taken to the hospital for stitches. EMTs are currently only allowed to observe until the insurance papers are processed. When the Program Guidelines are implemented, EMTs will be able to evaluate the ill and injured, render basic rescue and emergency care, obtain diagnostic signs, perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation, use stretchers and body immobilization devices, provide prehospital care of trauma, administer oral glucose solutions, extricate entrapped persons, perform field triage and assist patients with the administration of physician-prescribed devices.
The Oxy EMS will only respond to incidents that occur on college-owned properties, which includes the Sigma Alpha Epsilon house. Campus Safety officers patrol on and off-campus, but stick to college-owned properties unless they receive complaints. Trainees must adhere to strict confidentiality codes and only those directly involved with the patient’s care will be entitled to their information. All documentation is also confidential and any breach of these rules will result in the suspension of the EMT and review by Honor Board.
Students going on ride-alongs must follow a dress code of black pants, neat hairstyles, minimal jewelry and a tucked-in EMT uniform shirt. Other requirements to become an Oxy EMT include a 2.5 GPA, one completed ride-along with a current EMT, a valid certification and signing of the Code of Conduct. This states that all EMTs must select the most conservative method of care and maintain an alcohol-and-drug-free work place.
All EMTs will provide emergency medical care from Fridays at 5 p.m. to Mondays at 8 a.m. and will be on active or on-call duty. Active shifts will run from 8 p.m. to 3 a.m. on Fridays and Saturdays and at least two EMTs will be centralized in Campus Safety at this time. There will be at least one EMT on-call all other weekend hours who must remain within five minutes of campus.
“The work hours are flexible,” trainee Sara Camarena (senior) said. “I want to be in a setting where I can be exposed to the type of work I will be doing in the future and being an EMT as a college student is a great way of doing that.” Camarena is currently training at PCC to get certified. She said the training is very fast-paced, and it definitely affects her schoolwork at Oxy, where she is preparing to attend medical school.
The Oxy EMS program is not likely to interfere with schoolwork. Officer Novak works the 2 p.m.-10 p.m. shift and said emergency medical situations are rare. On April 21, the most eventful evening call came in the form of a noise complaint in Stewart-Cleland and the majority of calls to Campus Safety were escort requests.
“I think Oxy will benefit greatly when our program begins,” Senior Associate Dean of Students Jonathan O’Brien said. “The benefits for students who participate include career exploration, service to others in need and development of leadership skills in a real world context with potentially very serious implications.” Whether or not the campus nightlife will fulfill the anticipated potential of serious incidents remains to be seen.
“I think if an EMT program started at Oxy, the EMTs would have something to respond to, just not every night,” Toruno said. “At a school this size, it’s highly unlikely that someone would need medical attention every single night.”
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