Emergency teams test skills under physical strain

Medical teams trained for realistic emergencies at the ride and rescue competition in Orth an der Donau in Gänserndorf district on Saturday, ORF reported. Scenarios included an apparent stabbing, a serious accident and a complicated birth.

At one station in a butcher’s shop, a patient covered in blood appeared to have suffered a stabbing. During the examination, however, the teams discovered that the blood was not his and that he was having a panic attack.

The organisers deliberately include misleading clues in the scenarios. Berndt Schreiner, chief medical officer and medical director of the Lower Austria Red Cross rescue service, said responders had to focus on the actual problem. In a real emergency, being distracted from the underlying issue could also be dangerous.

This year’s competition involved 26 teams and 106 participants from Austria, Germany, the Czech Republic and Slovenia. The 12 stations were spread across Orth an der Donau, Mannsdorf an der Donau, Haringsee and Eckartsau, all in Gänserndorf district. Teams had to travel between the stations by bicycle, covering about 50 kilometres in total.

The physical strain was part of the exercise. Schreiner said patients had to receive the same standard of care at the end of a 12 hour rescue shift as at the beginning. The competition simulates that pressure through the bicycle route and the demanding medical stations.

The scenarios ranged from common injuries to rare emergencies. In one exercise, teams had to rescue and treat a seriously injured patient who had fallen from a tree while cutting branches. Another involved a birth complicated by shoulder dystocia, in which the baby’s shoulder does not immediately emerge after the head. A fall from a high ladder was also simulated.

Teamwork and communication were also assessed. Participants had to maintain a shared understanding of the situation and ensure that everyone had the same information, even in a small team.

The patient actors evaluated the teams as well, including how empathetically they behaved and how they communicated with those affected. Schreiner said emergency teams should work calmly, retain an overview and find the right solution efficiently while keeping the person at the centre of their response.

Ride and rescue has been held since 2011 and took place for the 14th time this year. The competition is organised by the RESCUE association for the promotion of emergency medicine together with the Lower Austria Red Cross. About 200 volunteers helped run the event.