Quinnipiac, North Haven Fire Department partner to give students hands-on emergency medicine experience

Students in Quinnipiac University's High School Summer Nursing Program gained firsthand insight into emergency medicine through a collaborative training session on Tuesday with the North Haven Fire Department.

Deputy Chief Scott Bisson and firefighter/paramedics Mark Santore and Ethan Simmel visited Quinnipiac's North Haven Campus with a rescue ambulance to demonstrate how emergency responders assess and treat patients experiencing cardiac emergencies before they arrive at the hospital.

The interactive session included a mock 911 call, CPR practice using a mannequin, training with an automated external defibrillator (AED), an ambulance tour and an overview of the differences between prehospital and hospital-based care.

Bisson said the demonstration was designed to help students understand how emergency medical services and hospital providers work together to improve patient outcomes.

"We were asked to kind of give them a little introduction to the bridge between what happens clinically inside a hospital and what happens out in the field," Bisson said. "Emergency medicine, whether you're in the emergency room or out in the field as a paramedic, is critical to the whole system. It impacts every patient."

The session complemented coursework students completed throughout the summer nursing program, including anatomy and physiology labs, cardiac emergency instruction, electrocardiogram (EKG) activities and cardiac resuscitation training.

Pina Violano, clinical associate professor of nursing and director of community engagement programming for Quinnipiac University's School of Nursing, said the partnership gives students a broader understanding of the patient care process before individuals arrive at the hospital.

"I'd like to have them have the experience of what leads up to that point before they come to us," Violano said. "We're going to take them through a whole scenario of what happens, how you call 911. We don't want people to be afraid."

The collaboration highlights the shared commitment of Quinnipiac University and the North Haven Fire Department to preparing the next generation of healthcare professionals through hands-on learning and community partnerships. By exposing students to emergency medical services alongside nursing education, the program provides a more complete view of the healthcare system and the teamwork required to deliver quality patient care.