Mass Casualty Training Held At OKC Tech Center

A mass casualty drill was hosted by Metro Technology Centers, Springlake campus. It involved first responders and students going into the field.

The scenario simulated a drive-by shooting while 39 students were loading a bus. The scene was staged by Oklahoma City Police and Fire Departments. EMSA and its paramedic students and the Department of Homeland Security also participated.

There were hundreds of Health Career students at Metro Tech involved. They were the actors, and also the people inside the staged hospital treating patients.

Students had to treat 31 injuries from the drive-by shooting, plus another dozen patients that would have entered the hospital on a walk-in basis.

Each injured person had different personalities. Someone even acted as a frantic mother searching for her child.

Josie Scott is the Simulation Lab Coordinator at Metro Technology Centers. She organized this event. This is the third year for a mass casualty scenario, but the 10^th year overall of training.

“They get hand-on experience of what it’s going to be like when they graduate and have to be out there in real life,” said Scott.

The goal was to make the worst-case scenario as realistic as possible for both current and aspiring first responders and health care professionals.