8C Monday, August 18, 1997 UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN Affordable, Fine Dining for Family and Friends The Castle Tea Room 1307 Massachusetts by Reservation Only, Call 843-1151 Something Special for Everyone • Jewelry* Sterling Silver-huge unique selection Watches, Antique Jewelry • Leather* Averix Flight Jackets; Brighton Belts, Hand Bags, Wallets, Bags & Brief- cases • Accessories* Formal wear - sales & rentals Ties & Braces Costumes Costumes & accessories on 2nd floor - Gifts * Inspired by Frank Lloyd Wright Lamps & Stained Art Glass, Ties, Jewelry Students play supporting role in ER By Mike Perryman Special to the Kansan KU volunteers aid patients, staff at LMH It was an early September afternoon in Lawrence and the heat was overwhelming. A gas leak at a Lawrence grade school forced the children outside. Exposed to the heat, students started dropping from heat exhaustion. Some were rushed to the Lawrence Memorial Hospital emergency room for treatment. There, Mary Beth Curtis, a KU student beginning her first day of volunteering in the emergency room, sized up the situation and helped deal with the children. "Some of the children were a little scared and needed to be calmed down. You have to jump right in. If you stop someone to ask about something, they are more than willing to help and explain, but nobody will actually hold your hand." Curtis said. The ER at Lawrence Memorial is a little different than the television show on NBC Thursday nights, where a dozen doctors and nurses surround and treat a patient while racing down the hallway. In Lawrence, medical emergencies are less frequent, and probably, a little less urgent. Student ER volunteer applications tend to be hit-and-miss, medical officials say. "Volunteers in the ER often are scarce here at LMH. However, because of confidentiality and liability issues, they don't exist at all in some hospitals," said Brian Freeman, emergency department volunteer coordinator and EKG technician of five years. The rest of the hospital welcomes volunteers of all kinds. But the ER is reserved for student volunteers 18 years or older who are aspiring pre-med, pre-nursing, or pre-physician assistant students Students find the emergency room at LMH less demanding than other hospitals. However, that doesn't mean a volunteer's time is uneventful. who are searching for experience and self-fulfillment, or those who already are studying in one of these pre-allied health areas. The ER receives up to 60 student applications a year. "The turnover of volunteers is pretty high, and we constantly lose and gain them. Some want a little more action. Some simply have fainted and not been able to hack the stuff they've seen," he said. "Student volunteer expectations at LMH are high because of TV shows like ER, Chicago Hope, and Rescue 911," Freeman said. On television, the emergency room attracts a large influx of gunshot, heart attack, and other patients in the worst kind of shape. At LMH, such cases are rare, but times do arise when, within a period of two hours, the hospital admits up to 15 patients. This is when the volunteers find their place, helping to calm and comfort patients and assisting doctors and nurses when possible. More common local emergencies include over-consumption of alcohol, drug overdose, heart problems and sports injuries. In case of a life-or-death situation, the hospital flies patients to the University of Kansas Medical Center in Kansas City, Kan., time permitting. The basic responsibilities of a student volunteer include stocking equipment and supplies, maintaining intravenous, oxygen and bed supplies and transporting patients from the ER to other areas of hospital. "Volunteers can look forward to procedure assistance, observation, and direct contact with patients, which are not among their normal list of responsibilities," Freeman said. Brian Kruckemyer graduated from the University of Kansas and is a pre-med volunteer in the ER. Although the average shift for NURSING: Male nurses face discrimination by peers. Page 11C volunteering each week is two to four hours, Kruckemeyer volunteers five hours a week. He volunteered 15 hours a week last fall. "Volunteering doesn't take away from my studies or social life. I look at volunteering this many hours as a way of learning about time management so that I'm not sitting around uselessly doing nothing," he said. Kruckemeyer has witnessed incidents that might deter the faint-hearted. He was volunteering when a man, who had previously had abdominal surgery for chronic stomach problems, came in with his stitches pulled. "The man's abdominal wall was showing, and I helped and observed while he was being sewn back up. A lot of people might have been queasy after seeing that," he said. Freeman said those who couldn't handle the ER often decided to pursue a different career. The hospital's insurance policy doesn't cover volunteers, so they can't perform any medical procedures or do anything that risks endangering the well-being of a patient. "Things like the abdominal incident happen from time to time, but it's not like the show 'ER,' Kruckemyer said. "There are times, though, when there isn't an empty bed, and the doctors, nurses and volunteers don't get a break." "One time, when I was on duty volunteering, a sick baby came in and needed an IV. I had to hold the little guy down and calm him while the nurse carried out the procedure," Erickson said. David Erickson, Lincoln, Neb., sophomore, emphasized the importance of volunteers establishing direct contact with the patient and making the patient feel comfortable and calm. Gale Garber / KANSAN Jay Nastav, KU student volunteer, said everyone gained experience in the ER by working with patients or just by observing and talking to the staff. The emergency room entrance sign directs ambulances and citizens to one of the busiest areas of Lawrence Memorial Hospital, 325 Maine St. "Doctors are willing to slow down and talk and explain, but you have to want to be a part of what goes on in the ER." he said. "A lot of people would see that as sacrificing my social life on a Friday night. I volunteer then not just because the ER is most active at night, but because it is a good way to learn how to sacrifice and be committed. Volunteering at the ER is just a stepping stone for the Nastav, who started at LMH fast June and initially wanted to go into pediatrics, decided after his experiences in the ER to go into emergency medicine. He works late Friday nights from 10 p.m. to 1 a.m. and sometimes volunteers until 5 a.m. next great commitment," he said. At great commitment," he said. All ER volunteers get the opportunity to prove to themselves whether they belong in the field of health studies. Curtis endured her first test as an aspiring nurse when she jumped in without thinking and helped the grade school children, who were suffering from heat exhaustion. "For some people it's difficult to know how to react in a given situation. You just have to want to get involved," Curtis said. Freeman said there always was room for volunteers in the ER and currently there are a lot of openings. Students in pre-allied health studies or students who are contemplating it can contact the volunteer office at LMH at 749-6108. 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