This division also provides health and safety education for children. Over 15,000 children annually take field trips to EMS's Children's Health and Safety Theatre. This program has been so successful that it is one of the most frequented sites by school children in East Baton Rouge Parish. The Public Education Division also coordinates medical coverage for all special events such as LSU and Southern Football games, parades, concerts, and all other public events in East Baton Rouge Parish. Events are typically staffed with EMT-Paramedics working overtime. There are over 200 events annually.

This Division is also responsible for media and community relations, advertising, special projects with local hospitals, and leadership to the medical community in Basic Cardiac Life Support (BCLS), Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS), and Pediatric Advanced Life Support (PALS).

Helmet Habit Catches On...

Every year in the United States, 400,000 school aged children are treated in hospital emergency rooms for bicycle related trauma. Of these, one-third suffer head injuries. Several studies have shown that bicycle helmets are effective in reducing the incidence of severe head trauma by as much as 85%. Yet less than 5% of children currently wear bicycle helmets.

Keeping this in mind, EBR EMS researched our own community and found a need to address this problem locally. We put together a team of concerned and well focused professionals to create and sponsor the "Helmet Habit Rodeo and Helmet Distribution". With the help of Our Lady of The Lake Hospital, Capitol Schwinn Cyclery and the local McDonalds company, the goal of this event was to educate children, in a fun manner, on the importance of bicycle safety. The event was a great success.

The idea for the rodeo was born from research conducted by EBR EMS that revealed an abnormally high rate of injuries and even fatalities from bicycle accidents. The rodeo consisted of nine basic obstacle courses where the children learned how to safely operate their bicycle through hazardous situations. Each child that attended also received a bicycle helmet of their own.

Local pediatricians have witnessed the "birth" of a new fad amongst their patients, "helmets are cool"; Furthermore, it is obvious to see this fad taking shape in our community. Why? Since the helmet rodeo, the one of the sponsors has seen their cycle shop emerge as the nation's leading retailer in Bell helmets, the official helmet of the rodeo.

Learning Safety is Fun

EMS provides public education for children in schools and daycares throughout the service area. This public education is in several forms.

Puppet Shows
Robot Shows
Unit Demonstrations
Safety Talks
Robot Shows

Perry, our 3-foot tall remote controlled paramedic unit, travels to many different locations each week. He sings and dances, teaching 3-12 year olds about safety, prevention and 911. Each session lasts approximately 30 minutes, during which time Perry talks about a variety of different subjects including:

Safety around the home
Bicycle Safety
Swimming Safety
Playground Safety

Perry also explains what actions to take if approached by a stranger and when or when not to use 911. Perry's appeal allows the youngest audiences to understand the practical instructions for Stop-Drop-and-Roll, and even abdominal thrusts for a choking victim.

Puppet Shows

The EMS Safety Show was developed in 1987 after research revealed an unusually high number of children in our parish being involved in emergencies that could have been prevented. Today, these preventable emergencies are still occurring, but have decreased since the implementation of this and other educational programs targeting children’s safety. The show is designed to be flexible in order to target seasonal safety issues. 

The safety show lasts about one hour and it focuses on teaching children about safety issues that deal with car seat belts, home safety, playground and pool safety, fire safety and helmet and bicycle safety. The show includes robotics, puppetry, popcorn & punch, 911 coloring books, stickers and a tour of a paramedic unit (ambulance). Over 5000 children attend this show annually. 

Unit Demonstrations and Safety Talks

Unit demo's and safety talks are reserved for older groups of children who are above Perry's targeted audience. A paramedic crew with a unit, talks to smaller classroom sized groups about safety and 911, conducts a question and answer session, and conclude with a tour of the paramedic unit.