The Daily Egyptian is published by the students of SIU at Carbondale. Except during vacations and exam weeks,
The Daily Egyptian is published Monday through Friday during the fall and
spring semesters and TWThF during the summer semester."
The SIUC police department's Tactical Response Team unloads out of a police van with their unloaded guns in the air during a staged meth lab explosion Thursday morning in an abandoned Carbondale house off of Chautauqua St. Peggy A. Wilken's advanced first-aid class was put to the test in an emergency situation for their final.
An old building located near the SIU farmland was the chosen location for a mock meth lab explosion yesterday, which was also the final exam for a course.
Twelve Advanced First Aid students responded to the "explosion," testing everything they have learned throughout the semester in a lifelike situation.
"This is a culmination of their skills," said Peggy Wilkins, course instructor and clinical assistant professor of health education. "When the students are finished, they will be certified through the Illinois Department of Public Health as well as the National Safety Council."
Aiding in the event were the SIUC Police and Dowell firefighters. An Air Medical helicopter and crew were scheduled to appear as well but could not make it because of the weather.
As smoke began to pour from the windows of the building, the students were setting up tents in preparation. Dressed in jumpsuits, facemasks and safety glasses, the 12 were split into four groups of three. When signaled, each team entered the building with all of their gear, prepared to handle the situation and emerging later with victims on stretchers. These victims were actors with makeup, making the situation as "real" as possible. The students then identified and treated the fake injuries on the patients and handled the situation as though it were real.
Pat Boyne, a student in the class and a senior in athletic training, said the class taught them everything they needed to know about first aid and that in preparation for the mock-explosion, they had a lot of hands-on activities in class.
Stephen Tonellato, another student in the class and a senior in university studies, admitted he was nervous about the final.
"There are always better calls you can make," he said.
Daily Egyptian ~ Amber Arnold
SIU students from advanced first-aid class take care of staged victims in an abandoned house in Carbondale for their final. Wilkens has had similar exams in the past, such as mock plane crashes, school shootings and school bus accidents.
Tonellato volunteered in the course's mock bus accident last year where he played the part of a victim in a crushed car.
"I think it was a good experience for all of us to be a part of," said Carolyn Garbo, a senior in athletic training.
Garbo said some of the greatest challenges were determining which patients to go to first.
"We had a tough situation with ours in the corner," Garbo said. "So our challenge was just trying to get him mobilized and fixed. We had no communication to the outside, so we didn't know that we weren't getting our supplies, and we were supposed to be getting them."
Though the teams were equipped with walkie-talkies, something malfunctioned, which, Wilkins said, is also a realistic problem.
"Challenges were such things as getting a building, finding a site," Wilkins said.
"It's just coordinating many agencies; that's the real problem."
In the end, everything worked out for Wilkins to run the final as planned.
The students were graded on individual skills and how they functioned as a team.
Later, Wilkins surprised all of the students with a shooting in which everyone had to help.
"When that happens with you, and you have so many people in a small area, it's just mass chaos," she said. "That's when you start to shine or you see people really make some big errors. The leaders all of the sudden just manifest themselves. The other ones become followers."
Everything was videotaped, so Wilkins will watch the tape to accurately grade each student. The students will also watch the video during finals week and evaluate themselves.
"Everybody makes mistakes," Wilkins said. "We hope they make mistakes here, when it's a mock situation, so when they're out in the field and they're actually doing this, they will remember not to make the same mistake."
