TCD students win state EMT competition
Two high school students enrolled in the emergency medical technician program at Technology Center of DuPage recently took first place at the 2016 Health Occupations Student Association State Leadership Conference.
HOSA is a national leadership organization for students in health education classes. Five students from TCD's medical science programs participated in the conference and qualified through written examinations to compete in several contests.
Joseph Egan of Willowbrook High School and Matthew Slonoff of Hinsdale Central, both seniors in TCD's EMT program, were the first-place team in the EMT competition. They are now eligible to compete in the International HOSA Leadership Conference in June in Nashville.
Marynels Garcines of Glenbard West, a senior in TCD's nursing assistant training program, placed among the top 10 in the state for the medical terminology contest. Nursing assistant students Chloe Purpura, a Naperville Central senior, and Shane Fredericks, a Fenton junior, competed in the nursing assistant contest.
Preparation for the EMT contest included assembling a response jump bag, studying several sections of the EMT curriculum, and practicing 11 lengthy skills performed according to the National Standard Curriculum.
The two students had to take a comprehensive written exam, then perform in a scenario before judges.
Egan and Slonoff were given a competition scenario of a call to aid a badly injured motorcycle rider. The team had to respond appropriately, stabilize the scene, remove the helmet, identify life threats, then prioritize and treat the patient. They also were judged on how effectively they communicated with each other, the assisting caregivers and the test proctor.
Egan admitted to being very nervous at first, but then his skills kicked in.
"I thought we did pretty well," he said. "The worst part was waiting for the results."
The HOSA Illinois conference brings high school students from across the state to participate in health and safety symposiums and leadership experiences.
TCD students were among more than 1,000 Illinois high school students competing in nearly 50 individual and team events over the three-day conference.
Technology Center of DuPage is the advanced career and technical education campus operated jointly by 14 DuPage-area high school districts. As they concentrate for one year on a specific career pathway, students enrolled in a TCD elective earn high school credit, as well as available industry certifications, and may earn transferable college credit at the same time. See tcdupage.org for information.