The scenario may have been simulated, but it also felt familiar to emergency department staff at Wagga Base Hospital: A 16-year-old boy was critically injured in a high-speed crash that had already killed one of his mates and, despite the efforts of a team of seven doctors and nurses, later died.
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It is a simulation like this one that will be used to education young people about trauma-related injuries and deaths.
In a first for a rural NSW hospital, the Prevent Alcohol and Risk-Related Trauma in Youth (PARTY) program is being introduced at Wagga Base.
The in-hospital trauma injury prevention program started in Canada and is run in NSW and Queensland metropolitan hospitals.
"The aim of the program is to educate local youth about the consequences of alcohol and risk-related behaviours and that these are not just limited to themselves but can permanently affect other people's lives," said Wagga's PARTY coordinator, emergency nurse Amy Talbot.
"Through education and interactive learning, the PARTY program aims to encourage the youth of the Riverina to make wiser choices and to avoid and reduce risk taking behaviour and alcohol or substance use.
"The PARTY program is about prevention and awareness. It's about learning from real people and their very real experiences," she said.
The program takes young people through the path of a trauma patient as they are rushed through the ED doors, into surgery, rehabilitation and, if lucky enough, recovery.
"Students hear from police officers, paramedics, doctors, nurses, rehabilitation professionals, and injury survivors. It is about experiencing what happens when young people make a decision that changes their life forever."
To enable to program to be run throughout the year, PARTY organisers are hoping to find Wagga sponsors.
"We are very grateful to the Wagga Apex Club who have pledged sponsorship however we're encouraging other organisations to come on board," Ms Talbot said.
For more information, call Ms Talbot on 5943 3566.
