Coastal Alabama Community College Creates Emergency Response Crisis Team

The Campus Directors and select faculty and staff from throughout Coastal Alabama Community College’s footprint in southwest Alabama gathered on April 25 for emergency response crisis training. The day-long exercise was held on the Atmore campus, in the college’s new Nursing and Conference & Education Center.
 
The training was administered by healthcare professionals from the college’s Nursing and Allied Health Division, with the goal of supplementing the efforts of first responders on each campus for emergencies of any scope.
 
“These are educators, not first responders, but they love people and they love their communities, and this provides a sense of security to our employees and our students that we’re going to try our best to keep them safe and do all that we can,” said Dr. Aaron Milner, President of Coastal Alabama Community College. “When they lay their heads on their pillows at night, they will know they have done their best to be prepared for whatever may come.”
 
As part of the Emergency Response Crisis Team training, each campus was provided with additional resources which include supplies meant to address a variety of emergencies. Those Emergency Response Bags compliment the practical knowledge of what to do in a crisis, which each team member learned during the training in Atmore. The bags were compiled by healthcare professionals from Nursing and Allied Health. The event represented Cohort I, with additional cohorts to be planned for subsequent years, with more resources to be provided to the campuses.
 
The employees learned everything from CPR training to Stop the Bleed critical care to M.A.R.C.H., which stands for Massive Hemorrhage, Airway, Respirations, Circulation, and Head Injury/Hypothermia. According to Dr. Milner, the training is a natural extension of the college’s commitment to being a transformative educational resource in healthcare for students throughout the state.
 
“I couldn’t be more proud of the work of our simulation team, led by Dr. Carman Godfrey and Dr. Tiffany Scarborough, the Dean of Allied Health,” he said. “Everyone’s dedication today, and every day, demonstrates their commitment to Coastal Alabama Community College and I’ll put our folks up against anybody in that regard.”
 
The college has become an invaluable part of the healthcare infrastructure in both rural areas where resources are scarce, and those that are growing exponentially and the population surge is outpacing the capacity of the healthcare system and number of qualified workers.
 
“We’re able to provide those workers and make sure we’re benefiting from a general health maintenance and still able to assist whenever a crisis occurs within those communities,” Milner said. “Days like today illustrate our commitment to one another, and to them.”