First Responders Course

This course started post-9/11 with the intention of offering a basic level of preparation to pre-clinical students who were eager to help with relief efforts. The half-day course consists of a series of lectures covering general concepts of being an out-of-hospital first responder, and introduces detailed approaches to several of the most common medical and traumatic emergencies. Students then apply their new knowledge to small-group sessions, including faculty-led case scenarios utilizing simulation and standardized patients, and workshops for hands-on practice for airway and splinting strategies.

Since its beginning nearly twenty years ago, this annual course has become a core part of early general medical education. The First Responder Course consistently yields excellent participant ratings (95% of participants evaluated the course with the highest possible 5/5 rating) and enthusiastic qualitative feedback. We continue to develop and improve this course based on participant suggestion with an emphasis on increased simulation time.