The Central Okanagan Search and Rescue (COSAR) team have begun taking newly trained paramedics onto their boat for simulated rescues.
It’s a new idea for both agencies.
“So there will be some issues,” said COSAR spokesperson Duane Tresnich, “and that’s when we learn.”
Just like a real situation, the paramedics go in with very limited information; no more than they’d receive after
a standard 9-11 call.
“So they have a bit of an idea of the situation,” said Ivana Kajic with Kelowna General Hospital’s Pritchard Simulation Centre, “but they have to come, assess patient, put them on a stretcher, and get them to a safe place.”
Erin Thomson is a new paramedic and someone who has respect for simulation exercises.
“Every single one is a learning experience,” she said, “and it’s what you decide to take out of it that really matters.”
With these water rescue simulations, it’s not just one agency training its own members.
Tresnich said that makes them more realistic because in emergency situations various responders are often called to the same scene.
“We all need to work together at some point in time,” the COSAR spokesperson says. “The more we’re familiar with each other, the easier it’s going to be to interact with each other.”
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