Media cover disaster simulation held by School of Nursing, UVAC
The Bangor Daily News and WABI (Channel 5) reported on a disaster simulation held at the University of Maine for students in the School of Nursing and University Volunteer Ambulance Corps (UVAC). The event featured a simulated active shooter and about 20 actors with a range of injuries to provide hands-on training for 40 UMaine senior nursing students in a community and population health class developed by assistant professor Kelley Strout. “This is an unfortunate possibility in nursing that isn’t often covered in the classroom,” Strout told the BDN. “We want to ensure our future nurses are prepared for anything as they go on to their careers.” The students were evaluated on their disaster response, including triage of victims. “You come away with learning how to prioritize care and learning how to do the most good for the most amount of people with the resources that you have available,” nursing student Jason Seymour told WABI. EMTs from Orono and Old Town assisted, overseeing the students’ work, offering advice, and driving ambulances from the disaster scene to the mock hospital, the BDN reported. “Something terrible like this could always happen, and as nurses, we’ll always have the responsibility to lend a hand whenever we can,” nursing student Natalie Bolduc told the BDN.