By Alexa Dunn, Copy Editor
Image Credit: EERC
On Monday, Nov. 21, the Eagle Emergency Readiness Club (EERC) hosted their kickoff meeting in the Lower Hangar in the Student Union. The newly formed club seeks to provide knowledge, experience, and certifications in first aid, as well as to supply members with emergency kits and supplies. The club’s motto is “Always Be Ready”, and they intend to embody this by empowering students with the knowledge and tools to help themselves or others.
Carson Tucker, president of the club, told Horizons, “I always had a passion for being prepared for every possible situation, but when I was injured during physical training, those around me lacked both the proper supplies and training to bandage me up, and now I have scars along my right arm … I started this club to better and properly prepare and equip students to provide immediate care to fellow students who require it.”
One of the key features of the club is that they provide all their members with first aid kits, which include emergency trauma dressing, bandages, and ointment, among many other items. In the future, the club plans to create different “module” kits, specializing in minor and major trauma, burns, and immobilization. Members of the club will be able to choose which kit they want to use depending on what they might need most in their activities and hobbies.
During the kickoff meeting, Tucker and other club officers introduced the club and gave two presentations about first aid topics: bleeding and burns. The presentation about bleeding also included a demonstration about how to use the emergency trauma dressing included in the basic first aid kit; the club then had members practice on their peers. The presentation on burns addressed different types of burns, differentiated between the degrees, and showed how to treat and manage them if they occurred.
The meeting concluded with distributing the basic first aid kits to members, and discussing the future goals of the club. Tucker stated, “I hope to send students through official training certification programs for First Aid, Basic Life Support, ACLS [Advanced Cardiovascular Life Support], PALS [Pediatric Advanced Life Support], and Wilderness First Aid.” Suggestions were also made for training such as on venomous snakes and fire readiness.
Tucker reminded students that “It is our intention to be a “Readiness Club” to prepare students for emergencies as they encounter them—not for students to go out seeking to respond to emergencies. If this is what students wish for, I’d recommend looking into a local CERT [Community Emergency Response Team] group. Our club is meant to prepare, educate, train, and equip students to provide immediate care in the event of an emergency.” If students are interested in joining EERC, they can find more information on EagleLife.
