CHILI, N.Y. – The heat wave broke but summer is upon us and when you’re outside, there’s always concern about heat exhaustion and heat stroke. Local EMS teams are testing some new ways to treat patients who experience it.
First responders in communities across our region have been doing training this week so they can be prepared and better help kids or adults who run into problems.
During a recent simulation run by UR Medicine and the Monroe-Livingston Regional EMS Council, teams from CHS Ambulance and the Henrietta Fire department ran through different scenarios to help cool a patient. It’s a problem first responders see often this time of year. “The 30 year average for annual deaths from heat stroke now exceeds the combined total for other natural hazards including tornados, hurricanes and floods,” says Dr. Ari Epstein, a fellow in UR Medicine’s Sports Medicine program.
It all comes down to the internal temperature of your body. “Even if it’s a relatively mild day, if you’re working hard enough you can still get your body temperature high enough to risk these kind of conditions,” Dr. Epstein says.
Right now, the protocol for first responders is to try to cool the patient down while they transport him or her to the hospital. But doctors at UR Medicine say keeping the patient where they are and submerging them in cold water up to their neck may actually be the best way to treat them initially.
“We really wanted to build out exactly how you cool that patient, what is the spectrum of care that we can give for a patient in the pre-hospital setting,” Dr. Epstein says.
First responders are training using tarps and hazmat pools they have on rigs and water from hydrants and tanks to cool the patient. They also used stretchers and ice from coolers in addition to the ice packs they currently use.
It’s a different technique but one they’re hoping may help save the lives of those who push it too far in the heat whether recreationally or professionally.
They also want to remind all of us to be aware this summer and to know when to call them in for this kind of response. “The best ears and eyes to watch for these kind of changes are coaches, teammates, co-workers, parents those are folks who can understand when someone might be showing signs of distress,” Dr. Epstein says.
Just this week in Chili, paramedics responded to a child under the age of 10 who was experiencing heat stroke symptoms after being outside. Thankfully, they were able to render aid right away. But even on days when it doesn’t seem that hot, if you or your kids or your elderly parents are going to be outside and exerting yourself, you have to keep an eye out for these issues.
Our local EMS agencies will be implementing these new policies and sharing them with other agencies statewide as we move through the summer.
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