DRMM
5
by Romina Delina
Rescue Simulation
One of the ways, we youth can be of help to our nation is by being able to give assistance to our fellow countrymen, most especially during times of calamities. That is, by providing simple first aids to the injured; by informing communities of the proper ways of dealing typhoon, fire, earthquakes and other natural calamities; and even by giving out donations of any kind. Doing such deeds is certainly wonderful but may become a great responsibility especially that people’s lives are on the line. To be able to carry out this social commitment properly, lectures and training were included in the outline of the National Service Training Program.
As students taking up the course, we also had our fair share of those lectures and training. Within in the fourth module we took up during the first semester is the Disaster Risk Reduction Management in the Philippines. Included in the lesson were introduction to the current Philippine disaster situation, information regarding various natural calamities and how to take action, and basic first aid and immobilization using backboards. To supplement the information, notes on Lifts and Carries and some videos of a rescue simulation was provided.
After dutifully studying the materials, our facilitator called for a practical examination in order to test how much we’ve learned. That is, on the morning of September 7, 2013 we students of L-SCI-1 gathered on the fourth floor of the Tan Yan Kee building to conduct our exam. Miss Espinoza started the drill by reviewing us some of the contents of the videos and the lesson on Lifts and Carries. She gave a special attention in the Blanket Lift and the T-Shirt Lift by having some members of the class do a demonstration. Later on, she taught us how to properly execute CPR using pillows as dummies.
During the exam proper, our group did not actually have a hard time. The situation goes something like this: we have to give first aid to a conscious victim with broken right leg and left arm. Lyn Dy-rastas acted as the injured person since she is the most suitable for the character among the members of our group, Garred and the Chipmunks. Following the procedure, we started it off by trying to talk with the patient in order to determine if it’s unconscious or not. Next, we checked her pulse rate and asked her where it hurts. Without moving her, we started splinting her broken leg and arm. While doing so, some of the members already started preparing the improvised stretcher using the T-Shirt Lift. We only noticed that we have forgotten to put the neck brace, when we were already about to carry Lyn into the improvised stretcher – thus, a minus point. Also, our first attempt to lift her using Hammock Carry was not successful since most of the lifters were girls and the boys were on standby in the improvised stretcher. In the end, our group successfully earned 47 points out 50 for the activity.