Habersham County hosted two Georgia Trauma Skills Procedure Labs sessions Friday to more than 150 personnel in the county at the Ruby Fulbright Aquatic Center.
The training from the Georgia Medical Services Association was funded by the Georgia Trauma Care Network Commission.
“It’s excellent training,” Habersham County Emergency Services Director / Chief Jeff Adams said in a press release. “It’s paid for through the Georgia Trauma Commission. They receive the funding through Super Speeder fees, and they disburse the money out to GEMSA and to the EMS and also to the hospitals for trauma care.”
During the sessions, attendees rotated through 30 minute stations that provided hands-on activities with first responders, EMTs, paramedics, and other care professionals.
Adams said the funding from the commission covered the costs of instructors and supplies used at each station.
“Each lab runs about $45,000 to $50,000 by the time you get the necessary supplies and equipment together to put the lab on and get the instructors here,” he said. “It’s pretty costly.”
Adams also highlighted how the sessions will be beneficial for the county as well as the areas surrounding it.
“We try to do everything we can to support the education of our staff and staff in the surrounding counties and it makes you feel good,” Adams said. “These trauma skills labs have become a big, big part of the EMS education through the technical schools and even through some of the nursing schools. Just to be able to get in here and to be able to get their hands on these cadavers, it’s completely different than what comes out of the textbook.”
Each month, Georgia collects $3 million in Super Speeder fines, with 20 percent of the revenue going to GEMSA for education of responders.
