[Ansteorra-chirurgeon] The value of additional knowledge

[Richard Threlkeld]

Chirurgeons of Ansteorra,

I have been asked whether getting additional training beyond that of Basic First Aid (BFA) is useful in the SCA or even harmful from a liability standpoint. Since this has come from several people while I am taking an EMT course, I wish to give my opinion. It is not necessarily the opinion of the SCA or the Chirurgeonate, so take it as you will.

I have been doing first aid in the Boy Scouts and in the SCA for over 15 years. My qualifications for this have always been Red Cross first aid and CPR or equivalent combined with calmness under pressure, a dose of common sense, and a strong desire to help.

In my mundane life, I have always felt a need a to know more than the minimum required to do any job. In the SCA we are sometimes called upon to be the first responder to the myriad of health problems that a temporary city of 3,000-5,000 people can have (at Wars, for instance). I have sometimes felt I was not well enough prepared to handle these, though I have always been able to provide good care to those I treated.

To answer these personal issues, I decided to get more training. After looking at first responder training, I decided to go for an EMT-B (Texas) certification and found an intensive course that took only 8 weeks of class and two weeks of "rotations". EMT-Bs can only do a few things we cannot and then only when under protocols of a Medical Director, but the required knowledge of the body and its functioning is much greater than that of a BFA. Our course is 164 class hours plus a fair amount of homework. This yields a greater skill in patient assessment - especially in the trauma arena.

It is here the Society benefits from those who have or get training beyond our minimum requirement. I can now recognize many situations where EMS must be called immediately. Based on my BFA training, I would not have known the importance of some of the symptoms and may have delayed calling for transport until it became apparent the patient was in serious trouble. There are probably still situations where my training is inadequate, but I'm not going for a medical degree any time soon.

We spent less than an hour in my BFA courses on bandaging and splinting and did no practice. After the bandaids, these are some of the most common things we do in the SCA. My EMT course has spent a couple of days on learning when to use what technique and actually practicing them. This could translate into more comfort for my patients and perhaps a safer transport.

Is any of this required? No. I provided a valuable service for years without this training and most of you do a wonderful job of keeping our friends and neighbors healthy and safe without it. Is it beneficial? Yes. If you know where the boundaries of the Chirurgeonate are, you can use enhanced patient assessment skills, basic trauma treatment skills, and packaging skills to do a better job in the Chirurgeonate.

Caelin on Andrede
Kingdom Chirurgeon, Ansteorra

P.S. I have had several people ask me about the intensive EMT program. It was recommended to me by our Deputy Kingdom Chirurgeon, Robert Carmichael (Croaker). He took it and worked as an EMT for several years. I have been impressed by the instructors. Neither the Chirurgeonate nor the SCA recommends any particular training (beyond a Red Cross equivalent BFA/CPR) or school and I do not recommend this school as Kingdom Chirurgeon, but personally, if you are in the Dallas/Fort Worth area and want EMT training, you might want to check them out. Contact either myself or Croaker for info. Neither of us has any financial or personal relationships with the school or its instructors and we will not benefit directly or indirectly if you choose to attend this school.