Four of the Tarawera Medical Centre team (Tony, Mick, Louisa and Jackie) spent their weekend with a group of rural GPs and nurses completing a PRIME update course with St. John in Hamilton. We have always supported the St. John ambulance staff with the fantastic job they do for our community and with the advent of the PRIME service our doctors completed the original series of courses. These were a one week intensive course with theoretical and practical training in emergency management of medical and accident emergencies and included numerous scenarios including extrication of injured patients from vehicle accidents in conjunction with Fire Service and Ambulance staff. Louisa completed her initial course soon after starting to work with us (this is her second update course) and Aidan completed his initial course last year soon after he began at the Tarawera Medical Centre. We spend a weekend every two years updating skills and learning the latest procedures and techniques as they evolve and this helps us work as efficiently as possible in supporting our local ambulance. We often respond and assist at medical and accident incidents, the most dramatic of which had 4 of us involved in calling in 3 helicopters to evacuate 4 injured children from a car accident, all of whom did well despite significant injuries. We have been the only practice in Kawerau to ever do this training and Kawerau, with Opotiki,  are the only Eastern Bay  towns to have this service. St. John is part of the wide team we work with to offer comprehensive Primary Health Care to our community and we enjoy the ability to work efficiently with them. Thanks to Kath and John, the two Intensive Care Paramedics, who ran a great course. Congratulations to our team who all passed the end of course assessments.

Mick Lavelle managing an emergency scenario

The group watching a demonstration by the two St.John paramedic instructors

Mick, Louisa and Jackie practicing with a Kendrick Extraction Device to remove an injured person form a vehicle