Stony Brook Volunteer Ambulance Corps

4780 SUNY Stony Brook, NY 11790

HQ Office

631-632-6737

Headquarters

631-632-6899

Fax

631-632-4108

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September 11th, 2001 Never Forget

Dedication to members of the SBVAC family serving in Iraq

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Training

The Stony Brook Volunteer Ambulance Corps prides itself in its training and practice. We recognize that on every ambulance call, the competence of an Emergency Medical Technician of any level is determined by correct knowledge of skills and protocols in addition to the ability to implement them in real life situations. With that achieved, excellent leadership skills and the willingness to adapt to any situation are also vital traits an EMT must possess. Accordingly, SBVAC's EMS education curriculum actively trains its members in these areas. The agency is also recognized as an official Suffolk County EMS Training Site. The Captain (5-35-50) is responsible for training new probationary members as well as ensuring the continiued training of agency members.

The Probationary Class

The Training officer and along with other instructors form the instructional team that teaches the non-EMT portion of the probationary membership class. This "probie" class teaches a curriculum based on elements from ARC First Aid and NYS EMT-B classes. Held every Sunday from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m, the main purpose of the class is to train new members to be confident and competant in the skills required for patient care. Also, the probationary class allows new members to get used to to the experience of working in an ambulance company. The initial hour is used to quiz the class on skills and lecture material taught the week prior. The following three hours are used to lecture on material followed by the final hour for skills practice. To ensure a high standard of competancy, probationary members must pass the midterm and final tests and maintain an overall grade average of 80%. After an invigorating semester of a syllabus full of topics ranging from management of patients experiencing shock to patients in labor, probationary members are then sponsored by the agency to take an NYS EMT-Basic course.

Continuing Medical Education

Training for SBVAC goes beyond the "probie" class. As a member of our company, members are required to fulfill a minimum training requirement each semester. These trainings are arranged and held by many instructors of Suffolk County as well as members of SBVAC. The topics of these trainings range from Advanced Life Support for the Basic Life Support Provider, to Atropine Mark I Kit seminars (as part of a Weapons of Mass Destruction response class). As the EMS evolves, the membership is kept up to date through our trainings. This assures that our members are ready for the inevitable every time they answer an alarm.

Field Training

Field Training for our EMT's is handled by our Field Training Officers (FTO). These are members who have been carefully evaluated by the Chief's officer and deemed appropriate to train other members on running calls. These members have shown to be capable of providing appropriate pre-hospital care as well as train others one doing so. FTO's are utilized to assist the Chief's Office on Crew Chief Trainee credentialing. Once a call is run by an EMT in the presence of an FTO, a credentialing form is filed for evaluation.

Crew Chief Training

Crew Chief Training is a unique, fun and educational experience for SBVAC members. Overseen by the First Assistant Chief, members who wish to train to become Crew Chiefs gather weekly to run mock calls. These mock scenarios are used to train on the management of patients who suffer from real scenarios that our crews face each day. Multiple scenarios are carefully planned out and run followed by a debriefing. After full evaluation of our trainees by the First Assistant Chief and Field Training Officers on both emergency calls as well as the Crew Chief trainings, a trainee may be given the Crew Chief exam to apply for Crew Chief status.

Emergency Vehicle Operator Training

Driver training at SBVAC is overseen by our Second Assistant Chief. Members who wish to driver train are inserviced by Senior drivers with the Emergency Vehicle Operator Course (EVOC). Once inserviced, they may begin to train on our fleet. Training includes rigorous practice on ambulances, study of Standard Operating Procedures, campus access points and an extensive array of driving techniques. Once deemed ready by the Second Assistant Chief and Driver Trainers, the member may be given the EVO exam to apply for Driver status.

Advanced Life Support Training

As an Advanced Life Support enabled ambulance company, SBVAC devotes a significant portion of its time in maintaining the status of its ALS providers. While the agency does have paramedics among its membership, the majority of ALS providers in SBVAC are EMT-CC certified. EMTs of Intermediate, Critical Care, and Paramedic level must be cleared by the agency in order to practice ALS procedures. To be cleared, individuals must demonstrate a through knowledge of Suffolk County ALS protocols and also successfully run ALS calls under the supervision of an agency ALS preceptor. The agency actively encourages its Basic providers to become ALS providers and sponsors a number of members every semester to take EMT-CC courses in Suffolk County.