From Screen to Real Life
A 9-year-old Arizona boy became a hero when he saved his sister’s life by performing CPR–a skill he says he learned from watching the 2001 film Black Hawk Down.
“You need to push on their chest three times, and then give them a rescue breath until they start breathing,” Tristin Saghin told ABC’s “Today” show, describing a graphic, compelling scene from the movie in which a medic tries to save a fellow soldier.
So when Brooke, Tristin’s 2-year-old sister, fell into a pool, Tristin, who often dresses up as the medic from the movie, acted calmly and quickly. Although Brooke was only in the pool for a few minutes, she wasn’t breathing when she was pulled onto the patio. Tristin revived her with CPR while their mother and grandmother called for help.
Luckily, Brooke was breathing when paramedics arrived. We give a thumbs up to Tristin for taking action to save his sister. This cautionary tale reminds us not to underestimate the difference an attentive mind and willing attitude can make in saving a life.
Watch the video here: www.jems.com/video/news/boy-9-saves-sister-2-cpr
Catchphrase for Safety
It’s happened to everyone: You’re on the road and find yourself in the path of an ambulance or fire engine. Without panicking, what do you do? The Tuscaloosa (Ala.) Fire and Rescue Service is doing its part to promote what to do when a driver hears the unmistakable siren of an emergency vehicle, with its “Pull to the Right for Sirens and Lights” campaign.
The department’s minute-long, comedic YouTube video features two providers in an ambulance hoping a civilian driver will pull over to let them pass. A third provider surprises the driver by popping up in his back seat, theatrically asking him what he thinks he should do in this situation.
After several wrong answers and smacks to the driver’s head, the provider tells the driver to “pull to the right for sirens and lights.”
We give a thumbs up to the Tuscaloosa Fire and Rescue Service for its ingenious approach to safety and for using YouTube to promote such an informative and entertaining video.
Check out the video at connect.jems.com/video/pull-to-the-right-for-sirens
First of its Kind
The American Ambulance Association (AAA), AMR and the National EMS Memorial Service (NEMSMS) recently published “The Line of Duty Death Handbook,” a first-of-its-kind guide to handling line-of-duty deaths.
Tawnya Silloway, EMT-P, who was named one of the 2010 EMS 10: Innovators in EMS, sponsored by Physio Control and JEMS, started the book after putting together a proposal for Colorado Springs (Colo.) to host the National EMS Memorial Service.
We give a thumbs up to Silloway, AAA, AMR and NEMSMS for coming together to promote this idea. The online version is available at nemsms.org. JEMS
This article originally appeared in June 2011 JEMS as “Last Word: The Ups and Downs of EMS.”
