EMTs cope with vandalism

By Andrea Barrack

Santa Clara Emergency Medical Technicians faced yet another case of vandalism last week when their lockbox and its medical contents were stolen from one of the Emergency Medical Service carts that was stationed off-campus.

According to Nick Johnson, the Santa Clara EMS Chief Director, the box contained almost $1500 in equipment.

"Our equipment is regularly subject to vandalism," Johnson said. "I wish people knew how difficult such acts make things for us."

In the past students defaced two EMS golf carts by urinating on them. EMT Abid Mogannam said that earlier this year someone ripped off the windshield of a cart during the night.

When EMTs don't have access to their carts they're forced to walk with their medical supplies to the call sites.

Two days after the medical gear was reported stolen in the most recent vandalism, a student responded to a mass e-mail (an inquiry regarding the stolen supplies) saying that he found the equipment in his backyard.

All of the gear was returned immediately, with the exception of the pulse oximeter, which is still missing.

The $800 pulse oximeter allows EMTs to determine levels of oxygen in a patient's blood, according to Johnson. He also explained that this piece of equipment is crucial to their service of students and must be replaced.

Santa Clara Campus Safety and the Santa Clara Police Department filed a report, but no one has identified the thief.

While EMS receives $15,000 each year from the school, the medical crew replaces its lost or stolen items by raising extra money.

"We are provided with a budget by the university," Johnson said. "We hope to use that money to improve the services we provide, not to replace stolen equipment."

When asked if insurance covers their materials, Johnson explained how "tricky" insurance can be. On top of deductibles they must pay, there lies an "abundance of paperwork and red tape."

Already, EMS workers pay hundreds of dollars each year to purchase their own uniforms and go through medical training.

Johnson explained that every time they report missing or damaged items, EMT leaders, who are full-time students, must recover or find a way to pay for the equipment.

This process, Johnson said, not only takes numerous hours, but also "is extremely taxing on the SCU administrators who support and advise our program."

Services that EMTs provide include: aiding students suffering from injuries related to trauma, sports accidents, and dangerous levels intoxication, all of which do not get students in trouble.

"At many universities," Johnson asserted, "if you are found intoxicated, you have two options: the hospital or jail."

Though there have been instances when students have been sent to the hospital after an EMS call, dispatching is a last resort.

Mogannam said he does not know why anyone would steal or vandalize their equipment.

û Contact Andrea Barrack at (408) 554-4849 or abarrack@scu.edu