Spring Fling leads to mass casualty incident

Another College EMS Service

Fri May 1 2009 13:05

You know why "TEMS is required to call an outside ambulance company"? Because TEMS is not an ambulance company. TEMS does not have an ambulance.

You know why TEMS is not allowed to let patients with alcohol on board to sign refusals? Because people with altered mental status cannot sign refusals because they do not necessarily have the capacity to understand the refusal and having alcohol instantly qualifies as altered mental status. And since as mentioned above, TEMS does not have an ambulance. They must call for one even if the patient came up to them because he wanted a bandaid.

So one might ask...why the heck is TEMS even there?

Your name

Thu Apr 30 2009 18:18

See the article here:
http://www.tuftsdaily.com/2.5511/ambulances-now-required-to-accompany-tems-for-all-alcohol-related-incidents-1.587719

TEMS is required to call an outside ambulance company for drunk patients because the university lawyers say so. A lot of those patients who you saw who were fine were being taken away so another EMT with the same exact certification as TEMS EMTs who just happened to work for a different company could get a signature on a piece of paper. Someone should start a petition to allow TEMS EMTs to allow patients who have consumed alcohol to refuse care if the EMTs say they are fine.

Your name

Wed Apr 29 2009 21:14

I have a few problems with this article.

1) Why is this article about the "mass casualties" the only article published about spring fling? Where's the article about the artists that performed, and the day that the other 90% of the student body enjoyed? Every time we have a speaker, there's a front page article about it. All I see in the daily is a picture of Luda and an article about TEMS. This is not very reflective of the day at all.

2) How about mentioning the fact that, on a particularly hot day, the concert ran out of drinking water even before Ludacris went onstage?

3) I also know of instances where people who were standing up straight and answered all of TEMS' questions correctly were escorted to the ambulance despite their coherence. Ambulance bills here are over $1200. If someone passes the "test" that TEMS gives ("what's your name," "where are you," etc.) why should they have to go anyway? What's wrong with just escorting them to the shade and giving them some water?

Some of us were safe and responsible at Spring Fling and had a good time. I'm very disappointed that the daily chose to highlight a select few people who went too far, and overlooked the otherwise enjoyable atmosphere.

Tufts Senior

Tue Apr 28 2009 04:55

Why is no one mentioning the fact that the policies for Spring Fling changed this year? Yes, the hot day certainly was a factor, but it is also likely that the clear plastic bag needed to enter Spring Fling changed people's drinking habits. In years past, when underage drinking was implicitly allowed by a more lax entry policy students would not feel the need to drink as much before hand. The approach taken by the organizers to curtail this activity might have led some students to consume far beyond their limits to compensate.

Your name

Mon Apr 27 2009 23:16

Calling TEMS is good. Calling a private ambulance is not always good. TEMS should be given discretion as to whether or not an individual requires an ambulance. More importantly, the university shouldn't take disciplinary action against students who are TEMS'd, because that creates a disincentive for calling TEMS in the first place and puts more students in harm's way. I'm really concerned that we wasted so much money and the ambulances' time and resources on what, in many instances, was blatantly unnecessary. It is in fact possible to have fun, get drunk, and survive on your own. Some of my friends threw up, passed out, blacked out, or all of the above, and if they were outside spring fling none of them were tems'd and everybody survived. stop overreacting

Senior

Mon Apr 27 2009 21:06

My only concern with making a deal out of the amount of TEMS calls is this: it will make students self-conscious about calling TEMS. Wellesley has a "good Samaritan" policy with calling their EMS...but when the administration started to get angry about the amount of times it was used...it went down. Though they don't know if it went down because drinking was down or because people were more afraid to use it.

Yes, it's bad that there were 30 TEMS calls. But can we at least be happy that some people were responsible enough to call TEMS?

Your name

Mon Apr 27 2009 20:37

To all of those who are ashamed at the entire Tufts campus for this think about what you just said (or typed). 30/~5000 that were TEMSed, not mention I know for a fact that a few were not Tufts students and not all those TEMSed were alcohol related so when it comes down to it maybe 20 people out of a school of 5000 drank to a "dangerous" level.

Your name

Mon Apr 27 2009 19:46

noone is saying its bad to have a 'good time'. Since when is it f'un' to be carted away in an ambulance. Why not just be responsible pseudo-adults and dont drink yourself to the point of hospilization!!? I mean, I've been pretty drunk in my life but NEVER to that point. It sucks so much when stupid drunk college students take up valuable emergency resources :(

MCI why?

Mon Apr 27 2009 19:34

Did anyone else see the headline of this article on the front page and immediately (and fearfully) grab a copy. Mass Casualty Incident? I thought it would be some horrific DUI accident or something else where a few students actually died. So what if MCI is the technical term for "not enough ambulances for the drunk kids"... Don't put casualty in the headline... jeez

Your name

Mon Apr 27 2009 19:26

That's what you get for requiring all TEMS calls to be accompanied by an ambulance. I have a feeling a majority of these calls did not require hospitalization yet the change in administrative policies requiring the presence of an ambulance led to some of this.

Junior

Mon Apr 27 2009 19:22

I was tipsy or drunk for almost two days straight and got out of spring fling with just a minor head ache (and a bruise from being kicked by a crowd surfer, but hey, it was worth it to be in the front for the Decemberists!). It's just about pacing yourself! Be smart! Drink water! Don't drunk-text! MODERATION!

Tufts isn't known for its big party scene, so it's kind of unevitable that people are going to go overboard on the days when the whole campus DOES party--Spring Fling, Homecoming, Winter Bash, etc. Hey, parents, if you think Tufts is somehow shameful, you should see the drinking cultures at other equally expensive and prestigious schools--we're hardly Tampa State! At my brother's (expensive, well-respected) school, 'Spring Fling' is basically a week-long binge-drinking fest. Americans in general have an unhealthy drinking culture, but that's a story for another day.

I imagine the unseasonably warm temperatures played a big role in kids getting sick. Most people I know who have been TEMSed learned their lesson from it, so I hope this will be true for those who got sick at Spring Fling. Negativity aside, I wanted to thank everyone who worked to organize and put on this year's Spring Fling, I had a blast!

Finally, not to be dismissive or anything, but the term 'Mass Casualty Incident' made me bust out laughing.

AJ COX

Mon Apr 27 2009 18:33

I was there, I pregamed before the concert. I was in the FRONT ROWS all day for the entire concert. I drank steadily from 11am to 4am, and I didn't need an ambulance. People should know their limits. Don't come down on Tufts, Luda, The Decemberists or Asher Roth. Stupid people get in over their heads and don't know when to call it quits. Thats their problem, not responsible society's. I went crowd surfing and got thrown over the gap in the crowd during "Valencia", got caught and then fell to the ground. I got up screaming louder than before and had a GREAT time. Ludacris KICKED ASS and I'm sure even he had fun seeing as how we got him to do like, 3 extra songs after he had already walked off the stage (10 minutes after he was supposed to leave in the first place).

I can only hope next year they have enough ambulances to accommodate. You can't have a huge college concert and have 1 ambulance line working it, thats bad planning on Tuft's part.

Other than that It was a great time had by all, so all the haters can suck it.

Mp5 out.

Junior Jumbo

Mon Apr 27 2009 17:24

While I by no means condone the behavior of these select Jumbos, I do not understand why everyone is so quick to judge them. The day was beautiful, and we are young college students -- aren't we allowed to live a little? So what if some of us made a mistake and took it a little too far -- I guarantee that incidents like this are not limited to the Tufts campus. Binge drinking is a characteristic of American college life in general.
Stop hating on your fellow schoolmates. Some of us have had an incredibly stressful semester and are just looking to have a good time. Show a little understanding.

Jeez, Tufts little support and solidarity never hurt anyone.

Your name

Mon Apr 27 2009 16:41

ugh Tufts social event haters.....get a life?

Tufts Sophomore

Mon Apr 27 2009 16:15

It makes me sad that nearly every student feels the need to participate in this "tradition." I understand the desire to loosen up a bit, but why pregame a midday concert, and especially to such extremes? You'll feel much better about it afterward... I just wish more students would respect themselves and their friends so as to actually have a good time that's not so...unreal. Many of my friends chose to drink before Spring Fling, which bothered me, but at least they didn't drink to such ridiculous excess. Call me judgmental but I think my point is valid. Realize that many of your friends would rather be with the real you.

Alum

Mon Apr 27 2009 16:10

Well, before we start making assumptions about alcohol, it was the first hot day after months of cold so some might have had issues with heat/thirst.

As an aside, do they have as many "event staff" student volunteers as in years past? I remember they used to be all over the place, several checking bags and tickets at each gate. Others would walk through the crowd and had their own set of radios, separate from TEMS. Do the volunteers still do all that business with the gates? What happened to all the radios? Or do the detail officers do most of these functions now?

Bo Bappolo

Mon Apr 27 2009 13:45

Dear lord. Learn to rage, noobs.

Tufts Sophomore

Mon Apr 27 2009 13:37

Tufts Senior,

Excellent comment. I agree with your sentiments exactly. Also, whats the point of holding these grandiose events if no one will be sober enough to remember or enjoy them. Time to step it up Tufts.

Tufts Senior

Mon Apr 27 2009 12:37

This is precisely the reason that I elected to move off campus into the city and choose not to attend Tufts sponsored events. While it is sometimes disappointing that I don't have a better connection to the school that I attend, the immaturity of so many Tufts students spoils the fun for everyone. Tufts students need to accept the fact that while we are a intellectually gifted group of students we are not invincible. Tap into your intelligence and recognize that it isn't "cool" or admirable to wake up after a binger and have no recollection of what you did the day/night before. While admittedly Tufts students are somewhat socially awkward mass quantities of alcohol doesn't alleviate the problem, it only makes it worse.

Some students say that they drink as much as they do before events like Fall Ball/Winter Bash/Spring Fling because they are such lengthy events and they want to be intoxicated for the duration, I would hope that our student body is more intelligent than that and doesn't require intoxication in order to have fun. This is the second time this year that an incident like this occurred, remember winter bash, when are Tufts students going to learn? I am all-for going out, having a few drinks and having a good time but for god's sake, moderation is key guys-- this isn't what Tufts should be known for.

A Townie...i.e. your Neighbor

Mon Apr 27 2009 12:24

That explains all the emergency vehicles in the neighborhood on Saturday. Seems kind of extreme for a mid-day event.