Anetic Aid supports Birmingham City University in road traffic accident rescue simulation

The 'accident' was a collision between a coach, two cars, a motorbike and a queue of people at a bus stop. Paramedic students were first to the scene (in the university car park), working with West Midlands Fire Service, who used their specialist equipment to cut victims from the vehicle wreckage. It was then over to student nurses, radiographers and operating department practitioners – together with medical students from nearby University of Birmingham - to deal with the casualties in a mock hospital. Anetic Aid was pleased to provide the Faculty of Health with extra QA3s for the event, so that they could create a realistic A&E environment. One of the coordinators was BCU Skills Service Manager Chris Williams. He said: 'We really appreciate the support given by Anetic Aid. We only have a couple of trolleys to use in our usual training, so in last year’s simulation, which was on a much smaller scale, we had to use beds and it’s just not the same. As soon as we unloaded the trolleys from the truck this year I thought, now we look like a real hospital!' Victims of the ‘accident’ were played by staff and students from the university and other institutions, with special help from organisations such as Amputees in Action and the West Midlands Casualty Simulation Group. The ‘Gold Command’ coordinating the rescue and medical operation was staffed by volunteers from the Queen Elizabeth Hospital and Birmingham Children’s Hospital. BCUs media students were also on hand, filming and photographing the event in the role of press and television news crews. Said Professor Maxine Lintern, Associate Dean in the Faculty of Health at BCU: ‘We are delighted by the way the event has gone. At the end of the day, it's all about communication. Nearly all of the students are in their final year, so they already have the clinical knowledge. This is their chance to experience what it's like to receive a patient from a paramedic, covered in blood, to deal with multiple injuries, multiple casualties and a distraught relative arguing or shouting at you at the same time.' And Adult Student Nurse Liam Ellis added: ‘It's very rare to get this sort of insight into acute care when you are a student - particularly as part of a multi-disciplinary team.'

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