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THE TRAUMA CARE WORKSHOP

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CONTENTS: About the MediSim program p 3

Feedback p 6

Key Objectives p 7

Social Impact p 8

Simulation equipment p 9

About CareFlight p 10

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CareFlight Trauma Care Program

“The Trauma Care Workshop provides high quality, simulation based trauma care training to rescue volunteers in regional and rural Australia. The program is delivered by experienced doctors and nurses, at no cost to the participants.” Regional, rural and remote emergency first responders (EFR) can be the first on scene at major trauma incidents, well before dedicated emergency medical help arrives. These EFRs may be full time responders or volunteers. They could be required to help sustain life before professional medical help arrives and then assist medical staff in some situations. Many of the EFRs are already trained in Apply First Aid or Apply Advanced Resuscitation Technique.

Participants extracting a trauma “patient” in Huonville Tasmania CareFlight's Trauma Care Workshop builds upon that training with additional knowledge, skills and confidence that may significantly enhance the long-term outcome of trauma patients. The program runs over one day (8.30am–4.30pm) or two evenings (6.00pm-10.00pm). It is specifically designed to give participants the skills needed to treat the injured until ambulance personnel, doctors and other emergency services arrive, and to assist the medical team if required.

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The Trauma Care Workshop The workshop is a mix of theoretical and simulation based trauma training. It covers the triage of patients, assessment and scene risk awareness. It also teaches the terminology and procedure for an efficient and effective hand-over to medical personnel when they arrive on scene. The training includes rescue scenarios using simulation mannequins, where volunteers work together in teams with their colleagues and learn about trauma care skills and communication.

A CareFlight doctor provides instruction on how to execute a log roll in NSW. The program includes utilising CareFlight’s CrashSim, a mobile, simulation based equipment that replicates a motor vehicle accident. We also use high fidelity mannequins to ensure realism in scenarios. The participants can practise as often as they like to develop the skills needed to make appropriate decisions, communicate with others at the scene and take action that could ultimately save a life. The workshop covers: airway management procedures and skills spinal precautions motorbike helmet removal and when to remove crush injury and crush syndrome stabilisation and safe extraction of patients from a motor vehicle patient assessment hand-over techniques to professional medical personnel triage haemorrhage control skills

The workshop involves theoretical aspects and skill stations and is delivered by experienced trauma care doctors and nurses. Participants receive a certificate of attendance after completion of the program.

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Volunteers managing a trauma incident training scenario at Leongatha Vic Attendees include EFRs from full time and volunteer emergency services, Police, nurses, park rangers, remote industry workers and St Johns. The course was first run in Kempsey in March 2011 and attracted very positive feedback from the organisations that attended. The CareFlight Volunteer Trauma Care Program has been developed by CareFlight specifically for emergency services personnel. Through sponsorship and community support, CareFlight provides the training at no cost to the people who give their time and effort to support their community.

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Participant Feedback from the Program

“IT IS ESSENTIAL TRAINING FOR THOSE OF US IN REGIONAL AREAS.”

“ENCOURAGES US TO GO BEYOND THE BASIC TRAINING & CONSIDER WHAT COULD ALSO BE DONE TO ASSIST PATIENTS & IMPROVE LIFE EXPECTANCY WITHIN AN EXCITING, STIMULATING LEARNING ENVIRONMENT.“

“IMPROVES UNDERSTANDING & KNOWLEDGE & CONFIDENCE IN RESPONDING TO EMERGENCIES. ALL STAFF SHOULD BE OBLIGED TO DO IT.”

“WAS VERY WELL PRESENTED AND INFO APPROPRIATE TO CURRENT WORKING ENVIRONMENT. YOU CATERED FOR ALL STANDARDS OF LEARNING.”

Participants during a motorcycle accident scenario in Kakadu, NT.

“I FOUND IT TO BE VERY VALUABLE INFO AND ALL OF OUR MEMBERS WOULD BENEFIT FROM ATTENDING. IT WOULD ENSURE MORE MEMBERS WORKING ON THE "SAME PAGE".”

“ALL EMERGENCY SERVICES SHOULD ATTEND THIS TRAINING.”

“ENCOURAGED DIFFERENT SERVICES TO WORK TOGETHER AS UNIT.”

“IT HELPS TO GAIN AN UNDERSTANDING OF HOW WE CAN ALL WORK TOGETHER TO ACHIEVE A GOAL OF KEEPING THE PATIENT TOGETHER.” “WELL PACKAGED TRAINING, OBVIOUSLY WELL THOUGHT OUT WITH GOOD BLEND OF EXPERIENCE, SKILLS, TOOLS ETC. AMAZED AT THE AMOUNT OF EXPERTISE AND PERSONNEL ALLOCATED TO THIS COURSE, THANK YOU.”

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“FANTASTIC SET UP, STAFF AND EXPERIENCE! HOPEFULLY COURSES LIKE THIS WILL SOON BE MORE COMMON, NOT JUST AMONG RESCUE STAFF AND VOLUNTEERS, PARTICULARLY FOR PEOPLE WORKING IN REMOTE AREAS. THANKS.” “FANTASTIC! VERY EXCITED AND INSPIRED. TRIAGE WAS EXTREMELY HELPFUL. GREAT TO MEET INTERAGENCY AND NETWORK IN A BETTER ENVIRONMENT THAN IN THE TRAUMA FIELD. I'M GLAD SOMEONE CANCELLED SO I COULD COME!!” “EXCELLENT. BEST TRAINING EVER. RELISTIC EXPERIENCES HELPS TO DEAL WITH REAL LIFE EXPERIENCES.” “WELL DONE. MORE, MORE, MORE…”

Learning airways management in Tasmania

Key Objectives of the CareFlight MediSim Program 1. To provide the first Australian mobile critical care and trauma simulation

training facility to benefit historically under-resourced rural and remote communities.

2. To provide greater levels of support through education and training at no cost to participants, to improve health outcomes and to help save lives in rural and remote communities.

3. To provide greater training and support for rescue volunteers who are typically the first response to serious trauma incidents in rural and remote communities.

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Community Impact The MediSim program benefits the local and wider community in a number of different ways. The community benefits through increased trauma care skilling of rescue volunteers who may be the first to arrive at the scene of an accident.

The emergency first responders benefit by enhancing their trauma care knowledge, skills and, most importantly, their confidence in dealing with trauma patients.

Professional emergency services benefit by having rescue volunteers who can sustain the life of a trauma patient and communicate the patient’s injuries, symptoms and treatment effectively. The patient benefits through better and more effective treatment from the start.

The health system benefits from the potential for lower recovery times resulting from better patient management in that critical time before professional medical help arrives. The graphic below shows the impact of the MediSim program in the chain of survival. What happens in the time from when the first responders arrive on scene to when the patient departs for hospital is absolutely crucial to how a patient recovers, or indeed, their survival.

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CareFlight Simulation Equipment

MediSim has a custom engineered and built mobile trauma training classroom designed to accommodate MediSim’s programs. Transported on the back of an 11 tonne truck, the classroom gives CareFlight the ability to take our training programs to rural and remote locations. Participants can practise skills in a comfortable, fully equipped medical environment (used on selected courses).

The MediSim programs also utilise CareFlight’s crash car simulator. The crash car simulator is a custom rebuild of a hatchback. It is a mobile unit designed as part of a trailer that can be towed behind any vehicle with a tow bar. Students are trained to stabilise a patient inside the vehicle and to extract the patient safely. Features include a removable windscreen, a dashboard that can be lowered to replicate a head on crash, and removable doors that can simulate emergency services cutting out a patient. Inside the vehicle, on the doors and ceiling, are numerous pipes which hold panels to simulate crushed panels from the side and roof.

CareFlight’s crash car simulator at work.

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The mannequins are portable patient simulators used for team training. CareFlight uses Adult, child & baby mannequins, and an airways simulator which have realistic anatomy and clinical functionality. They allow for simulation-based education to challenge and test students’ clinical and decision-making skills and facilitate realistic patient care scenarios.

Dr Ken Harrison with emergency service volunteers and airways equipment.

About CareFlight CareFlight is an Australian aeromedical charity, established in 1986. Our mission is to save lives, speed recovery and serve the community by providing the highest standard of rapid response critical care. CareFlight use helicopters, aeroplanes and medi-jets to bring a hospital level of care to the critically ill and injured. Our specially trained doctors and nurses care for severely injured patients who need emergency treatment at the scene of the accident. They also transport seriously ill patients who need to be moved between hospitals. CareFlight has a strong focus on education. Over the years CareFlight has trained hundreds of critical care specialists in the unique and challenging environment of pre-hospital and transport medicine. In 2011 CareFlight initiated the CareFlight MediSim program which teaches rural and remote emergency services personnel how to better treat trauma patients at accident scenes. CareFlight is also about innovation. Over more than 28 years of operation, CareFlight has played a major role in the evolution of critical care transport in Australia and been a leader in research and development of both systems and equipment employed in retrieval medicine. Everything CareFlight has achieved over the years has been with the support of the community we serve. That loyal and generous support has made it possible for CareFlight to spread our wings across Australia and beyond.

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Colin Brown Education and Training Manager, CareFlight T: (02) 9843 5165 M: 0407 415 267 Off Redbank Rd Westmead NSW 2145 Australia www.careflight.org CareFlight acknowledges the traditional owners and custodians across the lands on which we live and work, and we pay our respects to the elders past and present.