Crews train to respond to shooter situations

Memorial Hermann Life Flight, part of the Memorial Hermann healthcare system in the US, announced that has trained over 200 EMS providers, paramedics, firefighters, SWAT team members and corporate emergency response teams across Houston in dealing with active shooter situations. The HEMS service claims it is the only air medical transport service in the southeast of the US to offer this particular training service.

Over the last year and a half, Memorial Hermann Life Flight has developed its programme, named Tactical Emergency Casualty Care, with the help of the National Association of Emergency Technicians. “Few of these agencies have been trained on how to respond to active shooter events,” said clinical educator and senior flight medic for Life Flight, George Tarver III. “That lack of preparedness means that EMS and paramedics who are thrust into these situations must wait for law enforcement to clear the scene first before they move in to provide lifesaving patient care. In some situations, victims may wait several hours for treatment, a lengthy delay at a time when swift medical care is critical.”

The 16-hour course is designed to make agencies from the Houston area work closer together in ‘unexpected crisis situations’, says Memorial Hermann Life Flight. The programme features both classroom work and role playing scenarios.

“By exposing first responders to situations they have never encountered before, they learn quickly how best to evaluate the risks in dangerous situations and make quick decisions that can mean the difference between life and death for the victims of an active shooter incident,” Tarver said. “Through this training, multiple agencies learn strategies and techniques that can help boost survivability in tragedies of gun violence.”

Watch more footage here: https://memorialhermann.wistia.com/medias/7lpw3pcdig