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SUNY Westchester Community College Participated In Emergency Tactical Course And Drill At New York Medical College
SUNY Westchester Community College participated in and collaborated with an emergency tactical course and drill conducted at the New York Medical College campus in Valhalla.
In a historic moment for SUNY WCC, faculty and students played a critical role in a weeklong federal training course for law enforcement, fire and emergency medical services from across the nation who convened at Westchester County last week.
Counter Narcotics and Terrorism Operational Medical Support (CONTOMS) is a federal course which prepares participants to become tactical emergency medical technicians (EMT-T). It is offered only four times per year in the United States. At the end of the training, the participants engage in a 16-hour mass casualty incident drill to put their knowledge and newly acquired skills to the test. On June 15, 2023, this drill was in effect from 7AM until 11PM at the New York Medical College campus in Valhalla. The SUNY Westchester faculty and students of the summer emergency medical technician (EMT) course were able to observe and participate as patients in this course and drill.
“Being prepared for mass casualty incidents is becoming even more important for EMTs so this level of participation is important. It is a wonderful and unique experience for our students,” said George W. Contreras, Dean of the School of Health Careers, Technology and Applied Learning. “As a practicing paramedic for over thirty years, I deeply value the importance of hands-on practical training as much as possible. The students played patients with various injuries including gunshot wounds, stabbing, shrapnel and overdose. They were prepped with make-up and special effects to add realism to the drill. Today’s event was a great display of collaboration among higher education institutions, federal, private, and county agencies practicing during the drill as they would in a real-world event.”
This year’s collaboration and participation was coordinated by Dean Contreras who took this course many years ago and is now a guest instructor for the same. Over 25 students from EMT Professors Rob Del Greco and Joyce Wilson courses participated as well as local volunteers such as Chappaqua and Eastchester Volunteer Ambulance Corps. As per the course instructors, the drill was a huge success due to SUNY Westchester’s participation. The collaboration was such a success that the course instructors invited SUNY Westchester to participate next year, providing a valuable and unique experience for a new cohort of students.
