UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Building their skills and knowledge in emergency medical situations as primary responders, students in the Penn State master of athletic training program recently hosted a simulated mass-casualty incident, where they served as primary responders evaluating injured athletes and observers at a mock community 5K event.

This learning exercise simulated a scenario where a driver suffered from a medical emergency and drove into a community 5K event area, injuring several athletes and observers. Once the athletic training students were given the scenario, they practiced assessing and triaging patients for injuries, treating minor injuries and handing off the more serious injuries to emergency medical technician (EMT) students.

“In mass casualty incidents that occur during events like marathons, league sports and similar situations, many medical professionals that are already onsite for these events are athletic trainers,” said Brent Smith, assistant teaching professor in kinesiology and Athletic Training Simulation Learning Laboratory coordinator. “Simulating these low-frequency, high-risk situations allows students to become comfortable, competent and confident in delivering medical care during high-stress conditions.”

Students only learned of the scenario for the simulated emergency when they arrived at the learning experience area. Once on scene, the athletic training students called Josh Fremberg, emergency medical services field supervisor and instructor, who acted as an emergency call center for the simulation. In response to their call, he sent EMT students and volunteer campus EMS staff to the incident area to help treat the participants who simulated various injuries.

“We were thrown into an intense situation and had to quickly adapt, determine what had occurred and begin evaluating patients,” master of athletic training student Marissa Mondock said. “We evaluated those who were injured and triaged them based on the severity of their injuries and the vitals given to us by the actors. Those who required immediate medical care were taken by the EMT students, and we treated those with minor injuries.”

Students enrolled in the "Kinesiology 303: Emergency Recognition and Care with Basic Life Support and Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation" course participated in the learning exercise, portraying patients who were injured using makeup. These students also used information sheets describing their injuries, symptoms and vital signs.

Other students in a different course, "Kinesiology 403: Emergency Medical Technology," used their training as EMTs to portray additional first responders whom the master of athletic training students debriefed on each patient’s condition.

“Our classes and labs leading up to the simulated mass casualty incident learning exercise taught us how to triage patients and respond to mass casualty incidents. That knowledge was very fresh in our minds as we went through the scenario,” said Sienna Pinney, a third-year kinesiology major who is also minoring in neuroscience. In addition to participating as an injured bystander, she helped apply makeup and moulage to other students who acted as injured participants.

As a student interested in the master of athletic training program, Pinney said the event provided an interesting lens on athletic trainers as primary responders.

“It was interesting to see how the athletic training students assessed us and decided to treat our ‘injuries’ as a result of our makeup and the symptoms we described to them,” Pinney said. “We learned how to triage and treat patients in our class, but experiencing it firsthand gave us a new appreciation for the process athletic trainers and other first responders have to undergo to provide care in an emergency situation.”

Kelsey Sonntag, who graduated in spring 2024 with a degree in psychology and a minor in criminology, took "Kinesiology 303" to help prepare herself for a career in nursing and acted as an injured participant in the simulation.

“I’m planning to go into nursing, but I wasn’t sure if I wanted to pursue a demanding career like emergency care or not,” Sonntag said. “Being part of the simulated mass-casualty incident and seeing how the athletic training students responded to different patient injuries helped me glimpse what emergency care could look like in an acute setting.”

Shinichiro ‘Shinbo’ Sugiura, assistant teaching professor and clinical education coordinator of the master of athletic training program, helped organize the simulated scenario and held a debrief following the conclusion of the event. In the debrief, the instructors discussed how well the students handled the scenario, where they excelled and what they could improve for future emergencies.

Smith noted how this simulated experience is a unique learning opportunity for students interested in athletic training and said these experiences are vital in preparing them for their future careers.

“Not many other athletic training programs offer simulated learning experiences like the one we held in April,” Smith said. “Interprofessional education and practice is a critical part of activities like this. These experiences ensure that various providers are prepared for collaborative practice in the professional world. In this case, students gained a better understanding of the education and capabilities of other healthcare providers they may work with.”