After-school lifesavers

Seven HHS students are EMTsvolunteering with the Rescue Squad.

By: Liane Ventura
   When Hillsborough residents need emergency treatment, they may receive help from one of seven high school students who are currently Emergency Medical Technicians (EMT).
   These students are involved in rescuing people and gaining experience as EMTs.
   According to Rescue Squad Chief David Gwin, Hillsborough students Caitlyn Buckley, Stef Davia, Brianne Alecci, Alex Anastasia, Clare Locatell, Keith Young and John Oliver have completed the EMT training, and several others are in the process of completing it.
   Becoming an EMT requires extensive work — the journey starts at the minimum age of 16. Interested applicants can call the squad for an interview and an application.
   A training course in CPR and basic First Aid is required. Following those courses, there is a longer and more thorough class at the Somerset County Emergency Training Academy.
   The EMTs-to-be must complete a minimum of 120 hours of course work. They will learn about basic human anatomy and treatment for injuries, and will practice training with equipment.
   These courses are twice a week and every other Saturday, so it is a major accomplishment for high school students to complete these courses in addition to schoolwork.
   "(The course work) was a lot of hard work and commitment," said Brianne, a senior at HHS who completed the course work during her junior year at HHS.
   The class is "a lot of memorization … the class improves study habits," Keith, also a senior at HHS who is a second year EMT, said.
   Students have their own reasons for becoming EMTs, but their commitments are equally measured.
   Keith’s interest in first aid came when he was fulfilling a merit badge requirement for Boy Scouts. Brianne became an EMT because she would like to pursue a medical career, and she "wanted to get her feet wet."
   Chief Gwin said more than one-quarter of the squad’s 123 members are Hillsborough High School graduates who have stayed in the area. He also noted that many people who became EMTs in high school have pursued some sort of medical career, including one who became an emergency room physician.
   EMTs under the age of 18 are called probationary members — they are on duty one night a week and once every sixth Saturday.
   Being on call during a weeknight means the student arrives at the station at 6 p.m. and works on call with two qualified other squad members who are over the age of 18.
   When they arrive at the station, probationary members help to make sure the ambulance is fully equipped and then they help fill out paperwork, which must be done for every call they receive.
   Throughout their duty, the EMTs simply wait for an emergency call.
   Although probationary members have completed more than 120 hours of course work, they do not earn their Hillsborough Rescue Squad badges immediately — they must past three phases before they receive their badge, members must pass a test to get out of each phase.
   Phase I is learning everything in the ambulance and Phase II includes more training in courses such as rescue awareness; for each of these phases an EMT must have at least 20 patients.
   Phase III begins when the member is 18 years of age, and after this phase an EMT can earn his badge.
   The system is a way to ensure the EMT is knowledgeable about all of the equipment and duties he or she must perform.
   "The training is great, it is like a support system so you’re not thrown into a situation where you don’t know what you are doing," Brianne, who is now undergoing her Phase III work, said.
   The students agreed that whether one is an aspiring doctor or even just interested in helping people, being an EMT is a way to connect with the community, to aid others, to meet people, and to grow as a person.
   "I recommend it," advises Brianne.
   Anyone interested in joining the Hillsborough Rescue Squad can contact the squad’s Recruitment Officer, David Quigley, at 369-8625, ext. 456.