Grants provide simulation ambulances for EMS program

Update | Tuesday, June 15, 2021

Above left, Jarrett Harding loads “patient” Kendal Fulmer into one of the new simulation ambulances as Gavin Kay assists at the head of the cot. All three are students. Above right, Fulmer, Kay, and Harding inside the ambulance. Monitoring them from the back is Dwayne Monical, preceptor. 

Thanks to grant funding, Columbus State’s Emergency Medical Services (EMS) program has three new simulation rig ambulances. Known as “sim-rigs,” they are replicas of the back of an actual ambulance. They were constructed in a lab classroom in the GA building where the EMS program is based.

Previously, students used what you might consider “make-believe” ambulance setups. For example, they would place a stretcher in an area surrounded by chairs to act as shelves for medical items that you would need in an ambulance. Staring with this semester, students will have an actual replica of the back of an ambulance. 

“It is a great opportunity for the students to learn how to provide patient care in a realistic setting they will eventually apply in various emergencies,” said Kevin Hicks, instructor in the EMS program. 

State Rapid Grants provided nearly $28,000 for each of the three sim rigs. Additional grant funding provided just over $14,000 for the three stretchers and special equipment.  They are used by students in the Emergency Medical Services Technology associate degree program, the Paramedic certification program, and the Emergency Medical Technician certification program. 

 

 

 

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