CareFlight hosted special trauma workshops at the Ulladulla State Emergency Service headquarters this week to give volunteers from the SES and Rural Fire Service in the Milton-Ulladulla area more specialised trauma training.

The program is known as MediSim and was delivered by doctors and paramedics from CareFlight.  

It involved a car crash simulator and lifelike manikins which helped create realistic environments to assist with the trauma training.

“We know this training has saved lives,” said Colin Brown, coordinator of the program.

“The program teaches volunteers how to save a life in crazy situations.

“Those first five or 10 minutes can mean the difference between life and death,” he said.

18 volunteers were taken through workshops on how to deal with traumatic injuries such as pelvic splitting and catastrophic haemorrhaging. 

They were given theoretical instruction then had the opportunity to put their new skills into practice during scenarios.

See how they respond to a major car accident here:

“These emergency services do an incredible job for their community but they could be at the scene of an accident before professional medical help arrives,” Colin said.

“Quite often first responders are on their own for a lengthy period of time so they need to be able to manage that situation appropriately.”

Since the program was launched in 2011, more than 2500 people have participated in the free program. 

It is funded primarily through donations to the charity and is provided at no cost to community emergency volunteers.