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Ready To Respond: Students Sharpen Life-Saving Skills

Ready To Respond: Students Sharpen Life-Saving Skills
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Typically, teachers try to avoid a day becoming a disaster. But on March 22nd at Innovation Academy, a disaster was a huge success.

“You saw born leaders emerge,” says Dr. Cara Dawes, Health Science Department Chair.

That day, Innovation Academy’s stadium turned into the scene of a disaster drill. The scenario: a bleacher collapse. Nearly 150 “patients” were injured, including several designated as “code red” – or unresponsive. Innovation Academy was transformed into a mock hospital – with the intention of creating an “immersive experience” for students, says Dawes.

About 500 students took part in the drill, called Save-A-Life.

Krishna Chaugule, a senior at Innovation Academy, says the event was a “monumental moment” in her high school experience. She says it gave her, “an honest and unabridged version of what a hospital setting would look like.”

Students were assigned roles covering every aspect of a care team -- from 911 dispatch, to transport, to the emergency room.

“I was a ‘first responder’,” says Innovation Academy student Janice Kim. She says one of the most rewarding moments for her was seeing directives from her coursework in Health Science come together.

“I learned that in the field of emergency medicine, rapid decision making is significant and can have profound implications on patients’ outcomes.”

To help with that decision-making process, Wellstar Health System, the Alpharetta Fire Department and Fulton County Emergency Services were on-hand for the event.

“Students were able to see jobs they didn’t even really think about,” says Dawes. For some students, the drill was so impactful they decided to change their course of study.

“I think a lot of them get in their heads – nurse or doctor is Health Science, and there’s so much more to it,” says Dawes.

“Some of them actually decided to go in and to schedule changes for next year and switch to Emergency Medical Responder,” she adds. It is one of several courses offered at Innovation Academy taught by a group of health care professionals including Dawes, who is a surgeon.

Plans are already in the works for another drill next year. For now, Dawes is enjoying the outcome of this year’s event. She says it left her students “reinvigorated.”

“To have it all come together – at the end of the day, if I just see some smiles on faces, I will be happy.”