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Mercy Health Partners representatives Melissa Schneider and Holly Alway present the bleeding control kits to the Oceana County School Safety Committee.
Schools receive life-saving equipment.
#OceanaCountyNews
By Allison Scarbrough, Editor.
HART — All of the school districts in Oceana County received a set of bleeding control kits that could save the lives of students during an active assailant situation.
The bleeding control kits were presented by Mercy Health Partners representatives Holly Alway, injury prevention coordinator, and Melissa Schneider, trauma program coordinator and registered nurse. The pair presented the kits Tuesday, Aug. 28, to the Oceana County School Safety Committee, which is comprised of superintendents from all the school districts in the county, all county chiefs of police, the sheriff’s office, the Michigan State Police, Mason-Oceana 911, fire department representatives, EMS personnel and emergency management.
“The Oceana County School Safety Committee is grateful for the generosity of Mercy Health Partners for the making this project possible,” states a press release from the committee.
“The bleeding control kits will offer staff and students in our school systems throughout the county a first chance at equipment designed to save lives in the minutes following an active assailant incident.
“A good analogy to describe the kits would be to that of a fire extinguisher,” the press release states. “A portable fire extinguisher may help extinguish a fire, or keep it from spreading until a fire department arrives. These kits will provide equipment necessary to save lives until more advanced care arrives.
“All representatives on this committee wish for all our plans to never be used, but in today’s society it’s our duty to be prepared and keep our kids safe to the best of our abilities.”
The kits, which include tourniquets, were procured through an emergency preparedness grant from the State of Michigan, said Alway. The kits were designed after the horrible tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, Dec. 14, 2012. Adam Lanza, 20, shot and killed 20 children, ages 6 and 7 years old, and six school staff members.
“More than half of them would have survived,” said Alway, if the bleeding control kits had been available. “School shootings and disasters have become all too common,” she said. “The threat of danger is very real to them. This is a way to control that situation.”
The school safety committee meets every month to discuss and work on improving the safety and security of all schools in Oceana County.
A set of six bleeding control kits will go to the six school districts in Oceana County: Hart Public Schools, Oceana Christian School, Pentwater Public Schools, Walkerville Public Schools, New Era Christian School and Shelby Public Schools.
This story is copyrighted © 2018, all rights reserved by Media Group 31, LLC, PO Box 21, Scottville, MI 49454. No portion of this story or images may be reproduced in any way, including print or broadcast, without expressed written consent.
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