St. Vincent’s Medical Center Takes Emergency Preparedness to a Higher Level

BRIDGEPORT, Connecticut — For St. Vincent’s Medical Center, safety and emergency preparedness are critical to its role in serving the Bridgeport community. St. Vincent’s continually evaluates and assesses the needs of the community at its sites of care to ensure they have the proper safety-related resources and protocols in place. This month, St. Vincent’s further strengthened its relationship with the Bridgeport Police Department, while improving its own resources to enhance emergency preparedness.

Protecting Bridgeport’s Finest

Earlier this week, St. Vincent’s Medical Center Foundation presented the Bridgeport Police Department (BPD) with 400 individual bleeding control kits for its police officers. In the event that an officer suffers a gunshot wound or is otherwise injured in the line of duty, these kits will enable them to apply either self-aid or “buddy” aid to their partners. The kits contain a tourniquet, wound packing gauze, a pressure dressing, and chest seal. The Foundation offered their assistance after learning that the BPD did not have the funding in its budget to purchase the kits — valued at $40,000.

“The Foundation and the Bridgeport Police Department enjoy a deep relationship that has grown from being partners on the front line,” said Dianne Auger, President & CEO, St. Vincent’s Medical Center Foundation and Senior Vice President, Chief Strategy Officer, St. Vincent’s Medical Center. “For years they’ve been a loyal supporter of the St. Vincent’s SWIM Across the Sound. This year, in addition to holding a Boot Drive to raise awareness and funds, they wrapped one of their police cruisers with the SWIM logo. This donation is our way of giving back to the brave men and women who risk their lives every day and deserve to have every tool at their disposal to help them in the event of injury.”

Accepting the kits on behalf of the Bridgeport Police Department, Deputy Chief Anthony Armeno expressed his gratitude on behalf of the entire department. “These kits are vital to the everyday practice of a police officer to render immediate help and aid,” stated Armeno. “The generosity of St. Vincent’s Medical Center Foundation will provide each of our officers to put on their tool belt an item and a piece of equipment that is invaluable to public safety and officer safety.”

Public Access Bleeding Control Kits

In parallel, the Medical Center continuously works to improve its emergency preparedness training and resources. St. Vincent’s recently purchased public access bleeding control kits to place throughout the facility. In the event of an emergency that prevents first responders from safely accessing an area where a person is injured, these kits will allow associates and Good Samaritans to quickly attend to life-threatening injuries, which can save lives.

“Having these kits available throughout the Medical Center better prepares us for situations where access to the appropriate equipment to manage life threatening hemorrhage may not be available,” said Terence Sheehan, BA, CCEMTP, EMS-I, EMS Coordinator at St. Vincent’s, who led the project to acquire and distribute the individual and public access kits.

The kits contain a tourniquet, trauma dressing, gauze, shears, gloves, a permanent marker and Just-in-Time instructions. They are available for public access on floors 5-10, the ER waiting room, the main lobby, and the cafeteria.

Police Department Substation in the Emergency Room

The Bridgeport Police Department once again has a post in St. Vincent’s Emergency Room (ER). As a public space, it is very important that patients, employees and physicians feel safe when they are visiting or working in the ER — or anywhere on the St. Vincent’s campus. Re-establishing the police post provides an improved sense of safety for all those who visit and work in the Medical Center. In the event of an emergency on campus, police response time will improve and the escalation of potentially dangerous situations can be averted.

“An Emergency Room that is safe and secure for patients, their families and our staff members allows us to do our jobs more efficiently and effectively, while providing better patient experiences,” explained Steven Valassis, MD, Medical Director for the Department of Emergency Medicine and Interim Chairman of Emergency Medicine at St. Vincent’s.

Nicole Loiz, MSN, RN, Director of Medicine and Emergency Services at St. Vincent’s, echoes these sentiments, saying “We are happy to be able to provide the BPD with this post, as it will improve the safety and collaboration of not only our staff but our patients and community.”

“The importance of the substation is that it gives our officers who are constantly here an oasis to go to,” explained Armeno, “both to serve and protect the citizens of Bridgeport and the community which surrounds it, as well as playing the vital role of showing a presence at St. Vincent’s, and that at a moment’s notice, we will be here.”

ABOUT ST. VINCENT’S MEDICAL CENTER

Founded by the Daughters of Charity in 1903, St. Vincent’s Medical Center is a mission-driven organization committed to exceptional health care for all with special attention to persons living in poverty and those who are most vulnerable. St. Vincent’s Medical Center is a part of Ascension, the nation’s largest Catholic and non-profit healthcare system, and is at the forefront in patient safety and quality, with a focus on creating holistic, compassionate environments. St. Vincent’s was awarded the Nursing Magnet® Recognition, the highest national award for nursing excellence. In 2013 St. Vincent’s Medical Center was named Top Performer on Key Quality Measures® by the Joint Commission, the leading accreditor of health care organizations in America, and has been recognized by both the Joint Commission and OSHA as a model of a highly reliable organization dedicated to patient safety. The American College of Surgeons Commission on Cancer awarded St. Vincent’s an Outstanding Achievement Award with Accreditation in 2012, and it also has earned its designation from the National Accreditation Program for Breast Cancer. For more information on programs and services, visit www.stvincents.org.

ABOUT ST. VINCENT’S MEDICAL CENTER FOUNDATION
St. Vincent’s Medical Center Foundation is the fundraising and philanthropic arm of St. Vincent’s Medical Center (SVMC), which is a part of Ascension, the nation’s largest Catholic and non-profit healthcare system. The Foundation’s primary goal is to create and perpetuate financial support for programs and services on behalf of St. Vincent’s historic mission to serve the poor and medically underserved populations. The Foundation is also sponsor of St. Vincent’s SWIM Across the Sound, offering cancer prevention and patient support programs for un- and underinsured area residents. Founded in 1984, the Foundation, a 501(c) (3) non-profit organization, has become a vital source of support for St. Vincent’s through the establishment of endowments, trusts, and other financial vehicles. To learn more, call the Foundation at (203) 576-5451 or visit https://give.stvincents.org/DonateNow.