Student EMS Squad Starts at SUNY Canton

The service allows students to respond to on-campus calls, supporting both University Police and Canton Fire and Rescue.

CANTON, NY (08/03/2016)(readMedia)-- SUNY Canton students will be on call to help their peers with medical emergencies this fall.

The college recently received approval from the New York State Department of Health to launch its own Emergency Medical Service (EMS) Squad, an officially designated Basic Life Support First Response Agency that provides support for medical emergencies at the college's main campus.

Student volunteers will respond and perform an initial patient assessment, which will save time and resources for area first responders. SUNY Canton EMS members can administer oxygen, bandage wounds, perform CPR and rescue breathing, and stabilize patients. More complex situations, and emergencies requiring transportation will continue to be handled by Canton Fire and Rescue.

"Many of our students already volunteer with area rescue squads," noted SUNY Canton President Zvi Szafran. "We also offer Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) training on campus, and are home to several related academic programs. This is a perfect opportunity for our students to gain real-world emergency experience."

More than 40 volunteers have already signed up to become first responders as part of the new student-run program, according to EMT Program Coordinator Richard J. "R.J." Mattimore.

"University Police will alert us when a student on campus has a medical issue," Mattimore said. "Our responders will be able to provide emergency care for the entire campus 24 hours a day, seven days a week when classes are in session."

The Squad will provide other services including CPR training for the college community and standby support for sports and special events.

Late last semester, members of the newly-founded organization elected Anthony C. Romano, a Homeland Security major from Amsterdam, as the director and Cory Rolince, a Criminal Investigation major from Syracuse, as the assistant director. The entire group of students will work closely with the Davis Health Center and the Counseling Office, among several other student-focused departments.

About SUNY Canton

SUNY Canton is Northern New York's premier college for career-driven bachelor's degrees, associate degrees and professional certificate programs. The college delivers quality hands-on programs in engineering technology, health, management and public service and recently received number one rankings in library resources, library services and tutoring services in the SUNY Student Opinion Survey. The college's faculty members are noted for their professional real-world experience in addition to outstanding academic credentials. SUNY Canton OnLine offers hundreds of flexible and convenient courses as well as ten exclusively online bachelor's degrees. The college's 15 athletic teams compete as members of the NCAA Division III.

-www.canton.edu-