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Home : METC News : News : News Display
NEWS | April 19, 2013

METC pharmacy students administer lifesaving aid

By METC Public Fffairs METC/NMETC

The medical training Hospitalman Emilio Montano and Hospitalman Apprentice Scott Larson received as Navy students in the Medical Education and Training Campus consolidated pharmacy technician program kicked into action as they were serving as part of a Navy pharmacy program training contingent at San Antonio's University Health System.

During their first day at the hospital March 13, Montano and Larson went from pharmacy phase II students to lifesaving heroes.

Together, they resuscitated a 61-year-old man who had become unresponsive.

While rotating in to provide chest compressions, their quick action and application of training in basic life support resulted in the patient regaining an active and stable heart rhythm, enabling the hospital staff to stabilize and save the man's life.

"We were performing chest compressions but there was nothing on the monitor. There was no heart rate," Montano said. "That's when I knew from my training that we had to push deeper if we were going to save our patient."

"The fact that it was their first day of clinical - and our program's first day in that hospital - showed true courage to step up the way they did," said Cmdr. Mathew Garber, Navy service lead for the METC pharmacy program.

"It's great to be talking about students doing the right thing."