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SAIT students travel to Haiti

As thousands of Haitian earthquake survivors cry out for medical assistance, a group of SAIT students will help heed some of these desperate calls for help.
From Feb. 13 - 27, four students and an instructor from SAIT’s Emergency Medical Technician-Paramedic (EMT-P) program will provide first aid services through an organization called Canadian Medical Assistance Teams.
“This is a once in a lifetime opportunity,” said Richie Reed, who organized the trip. “We’re not representing a school there, we’re representing a province and a country.”
Upon learning that EMTs were needed in the relief efforts, Reed assembled a team of colleagues with experience in the field, a depth of medical knowledge and the ability to remain calm under pressure.
The team consists of Reed along with his first-year EMT-P classmates Mike Mayhood, Josh Lightman and Jeff Dobry, and an instructor from the EMT-P program.
Reed is amazed at how quickly the team came together and that they were able to receive academic leave from SAIT to facilitate the trip.
While in Haiti, the team will hunker down in tents on a makeshift base. It’s 15 minutes from the Port-au-Prince airfield, where the University Hospital used to be.
“There’s still a lot of primary health care being done there,” said Reed.
The team will be called upon to do any number of things, from search and rescue to triage. “As EMTs, we have unique skill sets,” said team member Josh Lightman. “We don’t work in hospitals. We’re used to working on the streets.”
Their days will be long and their meals sparse, but they’re confident their EMT training has prepared them for what is to come.
“We’re all used to mental distancing in our line of work,” said Lightman. “Just not on this scale.”
“We’re a strong group though,” said Reed. “Everyone was chosen for (his) ability to help each other out.”
They’ve collected the money necessary for their trip largely from family and friends’ donations, but need further funding.
They hope other SAIT students and members of the community will support their efforts. “Everyone can spare ten bucks,” said Lightman. “And it’s a direct cause. When we come back, you’ll see pictures of exactly where your money went.”
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