Aftermath of a Championship: Triaging Villanova’s Title Party

As the final seconds of the championship game ticked down and Villanova fans across the country held their breath, senior guard Ryan Arcidiacono swept the basketball down the court and passed to junior forward Kris Jenkins. With 0.6 seconds left on the clock, Jenkins hit the buzzer-beating three-pointer that engraved Villanova’s name in basketball history. As the university’s men’s basketball team celebrated, patients streamed into triage at the school’s viewing party with injuries varying from intoxication and broken bones to OC spray exposure and lacerations.

When I joined Villanova EMS (VEMS) as a freshman, I never would have imagined spending my Easter break as a sophomore communicating with my fellow VEMS members and preparing safety measures for the Final Four game-watch and celebration. Only moments after Villanova beat Kansas to qualify for the Final Four, my phone lit up with notifications from members of the VEMS executive board. Within minutes ideas were being thrown around and tentative plans shared. Our MCI plan had to be reviewed, an incident action plan had to be written, and VEMS members needed to begin communicating with our advisors, the local police and local EMS organizations for mutual aid. An emergency meeting was immediately scheduled to discuss staffing, logistics and operations.

Prior to the day of the semifinal, we set up a field hospital, complete with 11 patient beds and a decontamination trailer. Come game day, VEMS members staffing the game meticulously reviewed plans, completed last-minute tasks and gathered one last time before we took our separate places and prepared for crowds and injuries. Shortly before tipoff, command was established at a nearby police station, and paramedics, nurses, physician assistants and an emergency medicine physician arrived to assist in triage.

After Villanova beat Oklahoma to proceed to the championship game, riot-like celebrations burst out around campus. Students climbed poles, a fire erupted in the quad, and masses of Villanova fans swarmed into the streets. The evening of the semifinal game was a busy night for VEMS, but Mother Nature cut celebrations short around 2 a.m. when a severe thunderstorm warning was issued.

Villanova had been blessed with the opportunity to play for the championship title, and that meant bigger crowds, larger celebrations and the potential for more serious injuries. With only two days to prepare, VEMS members once again worked around the clock to coordinate resources and prepare for the championship game.

The Championship Game

On the evening of April 4, Villanova students and fans gathered in the school’s arena, the Pavilion, to watch and cheer as the Wildcats played for the national title. As students gathered to watch and triage was officially established, I settled in to my station at the front of the field hospital to follow the game myself. My fellow triage staff and I quickly realized our television was approximately 20 seconds behind the official live stream of the game; thus we weren’t surprised when North Carolina tied the game, as their desperate shot was preceded by disheartened reactions from the crowd. With less than 10 seconds left, Villanova had the lead, we expected to win, then somehow the Tar Heels scored. Would the game go to overtime? And then, much to our relief, we won! In the midst of the victory-induced chaos, a crackling radio transmission came from command: “All EMS units from command, Villanova has won. Villanova has won.”

It didn’t take long for triage to become busy. As celebrations escalated, so did the injuries: Intoxicated patients were steadily delivered to the field hospital throughout the night, and head laceration after head laceration (caused by glass bottles haphazardly tossed around) was dropped off, followed by an influx of over a dozen patients suffering OC spray to the eyes.

Although I wished I could be outside witnessing the mayhem firsthand, I kept a close eye on public safety security cameras and keenly listened to the radio for any reports of potential incidents or patients. Through the lens of a security camera, I learned of the large fire in the quad, where tall flames enveloped a couch and two young saplings that had been uprooted by intoxicated students. In addition, students lit several small fires across campus, covered trees with toilet paper and shattered windows. Mobs of students, exhilarated from our buzzer-beating victory, ran from one end of campus to the other end and back again. Streets were shut down and barricades erected around the major campus intersection in hopes of protecting and containing the crowd.

As a triage officer I had the responsibility of overseeing patient intake and care. It was my duty to listen to the radio for incoming patients, alert the triage staff of imminent arrivals, send an EMT out to the ambulance to receive each patient, and determine which bed the patient would go to. Beds were numbered 1–11 from right to left, with bed No. 1 reserved for the most minor injuries and bed No. 11 set aside for the more severe injuries. Based on the transfer-of-care report, I decided which bed the patient was to go to and kept track of the time the patient arrived, the interventions nurses and PAs performed, and when the patient was discharged or transferred from the field hospital. When a patient needed transport, I coordinated with a fellow triage member whose job was to communicate with local hospitals and receive updates on availability. After being notified which hospital to transfer to, I would then determine ALS vs. BLS, contact command for the most available transport crew, and summon the crew to transport the patient.

It wasn’t until 3:30 a.m. (we had been working since 5 p.m.) that I passed the reins to my fellow triage officer and joined a roaming crew. The early morning, dark with a cold wind whipping around buildings, was marked by the numbing sound of several helicopters, both news and police, hovering above campus. As I walked through the remaining crowds, I saw the charred remnants of sofa springs, the victory banners made from bedsheets haphazardly strung from dorm windows, and numerous clusters of public safety personnel ranging from transit police and firefighters to the mounted state police and FBI. I watched in awe as the state police on horseback split the crowds like schools of fish, never once quelling the party-like atmosphere.

While standing among the ranks of law enforcement officers, my fellow crew members and I were dispatched to a mosh pit-like huddle of students celebrating in the intersection dividing Main Campus from South Campus. As we carefully picked our way through the celebrants, looking desperately for our patient, a bloodied hand gripped my high-visibility jacket. “Help me. You’re EMS, right? Please help me.”

This patient had a head laceration that was bleeding at a rate that warranted a trip to the field hospital for further evaluation, so we contacted command to dispatch another roaming crew for the original subject while we escorted this unexpected patient to triage.

Looking Back

Exhausted yet immeasurably exhilarated, all VEMS members were eventually dispatched back to triage to assist with the final few patients and begin the process of cleaning and dismantling the field hospital. After 12 straight hours of hard work, excitement and adrenaline, the VEMS captain made the final radio transmission declaring triage closed. We traipsed back to headquarters and collapsed, fatigued beyond description, onto the couch.

Now, whenever I watch the last 4.7 seconds of the championship game, I am instantly transported back to the field hospital just moments before the winning shot sailed through the net and sent Villanova fans into a victorious frenzy. As I look back on that night, I recall standing in triage, my sweaty palms grasping the radio, eyes glued to the television monitor, awaiting the fate of the game. As I listened to the last-minute commentary, I vividly remember the nervous grin of the state police officer, the paramedics mockingly telling me to relax and the awkward hugs that ensued following the victory. My combined interest in healthcare and passion for serving others led me to get involved in EMS, but as an EMT student, I never imagined I’d someday be in a position to oversee patient care for a student body celebrating a national championship.

About Villanova EMS

Number of providers: ~45

Call volume: ~700 a year

Equipment: Stryker Power-PRO cot and Power-LOAD system, BLS ambulance fully equipped to Pennsylvania licensure standards

Vehicles: 2013 Horton E-450 ambulance

Villanova Emergency Medical Service is a 100% student-run volunteer ambulance service licensed and dedicated to providing BLS care to the Villanova community of approximately 12,000 students, faculty and staff. The Villanova EMS membership consists of more than 40 undergraduate students licensed as emergency medical technicians in Pennsylvania.

Villanova EMS members volunteer more than 25,000 hours annually to provide 24/7 emergency care to the Villanova community. The service responds to approximately 700 calls per year ranging from intoxication evaluations to cardiac arrests and everything in between. In 2013 VEMS purchased ambulance 85-29, a 2013 Horton E-450, and VEMS has recently received approval for purchase of a Stryker Power-PRO cot and Power-LOAD system.

In response to VEMS’ leadership and service during the 2016 NCAA Final Four and championship games, the Radnor Township Board of Commissioners honored VEMS with a certificate of appreciation.

Collegiate EMS Fast Facts

• There are 248 collegiate EMS organizations in the U.S., according to the National Collegiate EMS Foundation (ncemsf.org).
• In the U.S., organizations in 41 states include more than 4,300 campus providers who respond to more than 90,000 collective calls a year.
• The NCEMSF formed in 1993 in response to a lack of college EMS information and discussion on emergency services forums. 
• NCEMSF initiatives include Collegiate EMS Week, CPR Day, the Striving for Excellence evaluation tool, and the HEARTSafe Campus and EMS Ready Campus designations.
• The three-tiered EMS Ready Campus program recognizes excellence in emergency management and disaster preparedness of collegiate EMS organizations. It has honored nine campuses/squads since its inception in 2015.
• NCEMSF has an annual conference each year; the 2017 event will be held Feb. 24–26 at the Baltimore Hyatt Regency Hotel. For more: www.ncemsf.org/conference/2017-conference.
• More coverage: EMSWorld.com/10912924; EMSWorld.com/11226107.

Madisen Diehl, EMT-B, is secretary for the Villanova Emergency Medical Service. Contact her at mdiehl4@villanova.edu.