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Although you may not think of an office setting when it comes to emergencies, quick
thinking in an office has saved many people from injury or even death. Coworkers and students
may not have told you about their medical condition, such as diabetes, asthma or epilepsy.
Or you may not have told them about yours. When facing a medical emergency situation,
it can be difficult to determine when and if to call 911, when to notify the Center
for Student Health and Counseling (SHAC) and when to get Campus Safety involved.
There are specific conditions that should not wait for the arrival of SHAC or Campus Safety
staff. These medical conditions are time sensitive and waiting too long could have serious
consequences, even death. Additionally, there are protocols in place to ease the transition
from the ambulance to the hospital emergency department. SHAC does not have the tools
necessary to treat life-threatening events on campus.
When one of the following medical conditions occurs, dial 911 immediately:
- Severe allergic reaction (can be to medications, foods, insect bites)
- Chest pain/Heart attack
- CPR initiated
- Unresponsive person
- Immobile person (moving the person would cause greater injury and/or pain)
- MVA-car striking pedestrian
- Drug overdose
- Extreme shortness of breath
- Uncontrollable bleeding
- Stroke (symptoms include one or more of the following: slurred speech, trouble seeing, confusion, weakness on one side of the body or face)
- Serious burns
- Broken bones
- Dislocated joints
In a non life threatening incident, if campus safety is notified, they will help you
determine what to do. If SHAC is notified they can help advise you on the situation
and plan. SHAC is the primary health clinic for PSU students, and is no different then
any other clinic or urgent care in the Portland community, and is available for PSU
community members experiencing a medical emergency. One thing to note is that SHAC will
only be able to provide first aid on the scene. SHAC responders will determine what
course of action is needed next, whether that is transporting a student back to the clinic
for further treatment, or even calling 911 when the situation is critical, or the person
in distress is a faculty/staff member or visitor. However, if you are ever in doubt, you
should always dial 911 first. Dialing 911 immediately gets the help a person needs as
quickly as possible.
Example of when to call SHAC for advice; including but not limited to:
- Dizziness
- Stomach pains
- Headaches
- Nausea
- Muscle spasms/bruising
- Minor injury capable of walking (sprained ankle)
- Over exertion reactions- shortness of breath, red face, sweating profusely
- Vomiting
- Minor bleeding
One more piece of advice; know where your office's first aid kit is, what's in it and
how to use what's in it. If you do use something in it, make sure your supervisor knows,
so it can be replaced. Check the patient for any medical ID tags, bracelets or cards to
tell paramedics about. Likewise, if you have a personal medical condition, make sure
there's someone at work who knows you have the condition and who's familiar with first
aid for it.
If you are wondering where you can get additional training in First Aid and CPR, SHAC
offers training for CPR/AED (Automated External Defibrillator) as well as First Aid
for a fee. SHAC uses the AHA (American Heart Association) course curriculum for both
courses. If you're interested in setting up a training for either CPR/AED, First Aid or
both for your department, or you have questions regarding creating/maintaining your office
first aid kit, contact Gwyn Ashcom at 503-725-5123 or by email at
gwyn@pdx.edu. Or you can contact Life Line Health and
Safety at 503-243-3364 (website:www.cprlifeline.com)
if you decide to take a class off campus.
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