SHS Junior Hosts Stop the Bleed Training Program

Participants learning to use a tourniquet.Many adults in the Scarsdale community have taken a First Aid course or have been trained in the life saving skills of CPR, but how many are prepared to respond to an emergency bleeding situation? Like CPR, there are specific strategies responders can use to help stop bleeding and perhaps, save someone’s life. Unfortunately, few people outside of emergency personnel are taught the steps to take in an emergency bleeding situation. Recently, Scarsdale High School junior, Taryn Casey aimed to change that by hosting a Stop the Bleed training program designed to teach individuals how to act quickly in an emergency situation (and before medical professionals can get involved), where someone is severely bleeding.

Casey partnered with the Scarsdale Volunteer Ambulance Corp to provide a course that taught participants emergency bleeding protocol including the steps of applying pressure, packing wounds, and using a tourniquet in cases where pressure is not enough. The amazing trainers, paramedic Jim Gross and EMT Joanne Ornstein, were happy to volunteer their time for the class saying that they, “Feel passionate about teaching people the information and skills that could potentially help save a life.”

Casey believes that learning emergency bleeding protocol is important because bleeding is a leading cause of preventable death and having as many people as possible trained is vital in an emergency circumstance. In emergencies, not everyone will be able to assist, therefore it is essential that more people are trained because intervention can help save a life.Participants learning how to apply pressure with a bandage.

What’s more Casey shared, “Emergency bleeding situations can occur in all facets of everyday life. Accidents happen. I think it is especially important for people that are involved in youth sports (coaches and parents) to have this sort of training because sports injuries can lead to emergency bleeding.”

When asked what inspired her to organize this sort of training, Casey related, “I have an interest in healthcare education, and I learned that Stop the Bleed training has been optionally provided to teachers in the Scarsdale Schools system. It would be wonderful if this training opportunity spread beyond teachers to other spaces where training would be useful. Also, my brother has played hockey for many years. There have been accidental deaths due to bleeding in the hockey community and I thought that providing training could be a valuable resource to help prevent this as best as possible.”

As a budding medical professional and the older sister to a young hockey player, Casey is passionate about, and personally invested in helping to disseminate this critical, life saving information. She hopes that participants in her “Stop the Bleed” program learned the skills necessary to control bleeding in an emergency situation and that people will feel confident that they can do something when every second counts.

Organizer of the training Taryn Casey with trainers paramedic Jim Gross and EMT Joanne Ornstein. Demonstrating that Casey’s training program did indeed make a lasting impact, one participant shared that she felt galvanized and motivated to create her own “Stop the Bleed” kits. Still others said that they feel empowered by their new knowledge and hope more people attend a training like this. Casey also hopes to host more trainings in the future and would especially like to bring the Stop the Bleed program to Scarsdale High School.

In addition to this incredible Stop the Bleed training, the Scarsdale Volunteer Ambulance Corp offers a wide variety of other classes including CPR and EMT training. Check out their website for more information https://www.scarsdalevac.com/