Lessons from a Collegiate-Based EMS Program

This research aims to report the components and culture of an effective collegiate EMS program in five different sections:

• the history of the program being studied
• EMT role and identity
• the role continuum,
• group cohesion, and
• organizational effectiveness

The author, a social scientist and Emergency Medical Technician (EMT), performed nine months of participant-observation research -- understanding a culture by fully participating in it -- at a small university on the West Coast. The program discussed herein treats roughly 200 students on campus each year.

State-licensed student-EMTs (hereafter referred to simply as 'EMTs') select roles along a continuum from 'student' to 'medical professional.' The medical condition of the patient is the largest contributing factor in role-selection for EMTs. If the patient has a non-serious injury, the interaction between EMTs and patient is very similar to that between peers. If the condition is serious, EMTs adopt the character of medical professionals. The theoretical implications of these findings indicate that emergency medical workers are likely to draw on their non-professional characters when appropriate to do so.

Focusing on interaction between EMTs, I discovered that group cohesion is the most important factor in running an effective program. When group familiarity is high, response time is quicker, EMTs display more teamwork, and fewer shifts are missed or cancelled. Program officers bolster group cohesion, and so larger programs (25-50 volunteers) are able to operate more smoothly.

Collegiate EMS programs are being created at a quickly increasing rate (more programs were engendered in the last 14 years than between 1950 and 1989). A case study will allow us to see which factors contribute to the effectiveness of a collegiate EMS program, and use the findings to improve similar programs. Using the lessons from this research, effective new collegiate programs can be created, and existing medical, safety, and community-based programs can be improved.

Effective collegiate programs reduce student medical costs, help alleviate strain on prehospital emergency workers and local fire departments, allow volunteers to gain medical and organizational experience, and, with quicker on-campus response times than off-campus emergency crews, can save lives.

A History of Sunshine University Emergency Medical Services (SUEMS)

This research takes place at Sunshine University, a West-Coast private school with an undergraduate population of 5,000, in close proximity to a Fire Department. In 1997, the Fire Department made over 120 emergency calls to the campus. The next year, four students approached a staff FNP/PA willing to volunteer their training to alleviate the stress put on county emergency services. The state-licensed EMTs volunteered to go on-call during all hours that the Student Health Center was closed. The FNP/PA agreed to act as Medical Advisor for the student-run program, and recalls "I had four people who came to me willing to stay up nights and take on an amazing responsibility, so I said, as long as you're willing, I'm willing." SUEMS was born, and in 1999 the Fire Department made only 20 calls to the university. How did they do it?

SUEMS secured funding for equipment and operational costs from the Student Health Center, to be drawn from the Office of Student Life. Like 90% of collegiate EMS programs nationally, all EMTs were volunteers. EMTs went on-call between 5:00pm and 7:30am, committed to responding to any medical emergency on campus within two minutes. During these hours, the EMTs became the front line of defense for the university. The Medical Advisor acted as base-advisor throughout the night.