Deer Park was the first school district on Long Island to receive “Stop the Bleed” training from the Stony Brook University Hospital Trauma Center. Dr. James Vosswinkel, the center’s head surgeon, and Colby Rowe, the center’s coordinator for education and public outreach, sent an entire team to Deer Park on Oct. 20 to conduct hands-on training for all of the district’s administrators on how to use tourniquets and stop bleeding.

The “Stop the Bleed” program stemmed from the 2012 shootings at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, leading to a series of expert recommendations led by the American College of Surgeons. This free training is important for organizations such as schools which are considered high-risk targets for active shooters or mass casualty events. The Stony Brook University Hospital Trauma Center’s initiative, in collaboration with the Emergency Preparedness Regional Resource Center, utilizes a course designed by the National Association of Emergency Medical Technicians to train initial responders in hemorrhage control techniques.