The CPUT Emergency Medical Sciences Department is proving to be a leader in the training of highly skilled paramedics.
Recently, ER24, a national private emergency medical service provider, applauded the standard of teaching and learning at CPUT.
The praise for the department came just days after three first-year students assisted a CPUT student who collapsed while jogging at the Bellville campus running track.
Joseph Roberts, Brain Allchin, and Garth van Eck, who are all in their first year of study, said they were able to assist the student by applying exactly what they had learnt in class.
Roberts, who witnessed the student collapse at the Bellville running track said: “I immediately rushed over and felt for a pulse. I then asked his friend to call for help.”
Second on the scene was Allchin, who alerted ER24 for the dispatch of an ambulance.
Van Eck was then notified of the incident via cellphone by Allchin.
“I was asked to go to the institution’s entrance and direct the ambulance to the running track,” he said.
The ER24, paramedic that responded to the call, applauded the students for taking charge of the situation.
In a letter to the Emergency Medical Sciences Department, ER24 officials stated that the students showed “excellent insight and knowledge in the dynamics of emergency medical care.”
ER24 officials said the students’ quick response and initiation of cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) contributed to a good prognosis of the student.
“This is an excellent reflection of the standard of training and education at the University,” stated ER24 officials.
Lloyd Christopher, Head of the Department, said training is hands-on. Students are also required to work at emergency services and at hospitals on weekends throughout the duration of the three-year programme.
Currently, CPUT is the only institution in the Western Cape offering the programme.
By Candes Keating
Written by CPUT News
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