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	HIGH SCHOOL CREW IS TRAINED, READY TO RESPOND TO MEDICAL EMERGENCIES *Joel Turner, The Roanoke Times* When a Patrick Henry High School student was injured and suffered a seizure after a fight in the school cafeteria earlier this school year, Amy Barger and David Fifer responded quickly to provide emergency medical care. Barger and Fifer, who were nearby when the altercation occurred, are Patrick Henry students and certified emergency medical technicians. They provided emergency care for the injured student until a Roanoke Fire-EMS unit could arrive.
Barger and Fifer are members of Patrick Henry's Emergency Response Team, a student volunteer group that provides emergency care on the school's campus. The team, which was formed about a year ago, is composed of four students who are on call from 7:30 a.m. to 3 p.m., Monday through Friday, to respond to medical or trauma emergencies on the campus. Their role is to provide the first phases of patient care and stabilization until a city Fire-EMS transporting team arrives. Because Patrick Henry is a campus-style school with multiple buildings, it can sometimes take five minutes or longer for a city emergency unit to reach the scene. "Since we're on campus and on call, we can get there quickly," said Fifer, a senior and team member. "We can be there within seconds sometimes." Patrick Henry is one of a few high schools in the United States with a student emergency response team. All four students have an interest in medical services and volunteer with emergency rescue units. They have completed more than 100 hours in classes and training to become EMTs. Some have also taken additional advanced classes in emergency care. "I've always wanted to be in medical services," said Barger, a senior who volunteers on weekends with the Clearbrook Rescue Squad. Andrew Ferring and John Kaylor, the other two members of the Patrick Henry team, are volunteers with Roanoke Fire-EMS. Both are seniors.
"I got interested in it when I was a sophomore and took a class," Ferring said. Both of Kaylor's parents have been volunteers with Roanoke EMS. "I've been interested in emergency medical services all of my life," Kaylor said. Fifer said he is considering a career in law enforcement. "I figured this would be a way to get my foot in the door on public safety." The student team has responded to 19 emergencies at the school this school year. Each ERT member carries a small first-aid bag at all times while he or she is on call at the school. They take the bags to their classes so they will be ready to respond immediately to calls. The kit includes a blood pressure cuff, stethoscope, latex gloves, trauma pad, gauze, bandage tape, bandage scissors, bandages and other emergency supplies. The team keeps a larger emergency bag in the school's main office that contains more equipment and supplies. Each ERT member carries a radio programmed to receive and transmit on both the ERT and school administration frequencies. They have uniforms and at least one member wears his or her uniform each day.
The school administration, school resource officers, security officers and ERT members have procedures for handling immediate response to emergencies. The team members must file an incident report for each emergency call. ERT members also attend school pep rallies and other large gatherings of students where a medical emergency might arise.
	Butch Lewis, one of Patrick Henry's resource officers and the faculty adviser to the ERT, said the student volunteer program has the potential to save lives. Lewis said school administrators see the benefit of the ERT for the school and community. "The student body has also responded favorably," he said. The team members work closely with Lewis and use his office for meetings. n the last edition of the “Connection”, April was mentioned as the date when the “Orientation to CERT” Independent Study would be available. This has now been delayed until September. Look for it then. The student volunteers don't have a vehicle, but they said the school's security guards will give them a ride on their golf carts if they need to get across the campus quickly. Recently, the team staged a mock vehicle extrication on the campus as part of a school safety program - and to generate more interest in the ERT.
When the team members are called out of classes to respond to emergencies, they must make up the missed work. But they said that teachers have been very cooperative with them. The students have helped raise the funds to help pay for their equipment and supplies. They also receive some supplies and equipment from the city police department, Roanoke EMS and Carilion Health System.

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