Although calls to Brown Emergency Medical Services were up slightly this year compared to previous years, those familiar with these statistics told The Herald the increase is nothing out of the ordinary.
EMS responded to 653 calls this school year as of March 31, 172 of which were alcohol- or drug-related. Of this total, 158 - or 24 percent- involved alcohol only, while five involved other substances and nine involved both alcohol and other substances.
Though the number of alcohol-related calls increased this year, this increase was proportional to the increase in total calls, said Richard Lapierre, manager of EMS. Last year's statistics indicated that 23 percent of calls to EMS were alcohol-related, according to a Feb. 24, 2005 Herald article.
"Every year we get more and more alcohol calls, but if you look at it in relationship to total runs, it stays the same," he said. "25 to 27 percent are alcohol- or drug-related and that pretty much tracks the same across country. It's not as though Brown has this unique problem."
Lapierre added that local fire departments also experience an increase in the number of calls each year.
"I think it's very similar to what happens to other communities," said Amy Sanderson-Roderick, an EMS supervisor. "It gets a lot more exposure each year and people are more likely to utilize it knowing it's there. (At Brown) there is a pretty big campaign to get students to call EMS when their friends are intoxicated."
A large portion of calls to EMS comes in September and April because of eager first-years and Spring Weekend, Lapierre said.
"Being away from home for the first time, the restrictions of living at home are no longer there," he said. Many first-years try to see "how much vodka (their) little bodies can tolerate."
10 percent of this year's total calls to EMS came from students participating in Brown's summer programs, Lapierre said. Summer students traditionally have problems with alcohol similar to first-years, he said.
"They're away from home," he said. "We had a problem (with intoxicated students) when (summer programs) first started. They were literally jumping out dorm windows and crawling into the clubs of Providence."
Sanderson-Roderick added that sometimes "homesickness turns into physical illness."
After these initial problems, the University instituted a no-tolerance alcohol policy for the summer program, and EMS has seen a sharp decline in the number of alcohol-related calls from student participating in summer programs.
Despite this, summer program participants make up the second-largest percentage of cases taken by EMS, behind only undergraduate students, who make up 69 percent of cases. 4 percent of the calls EMS receives come from graduate students, while 7 percent come from faculty.
EMS, which was founded in 1978, boasts five full-time paid supervisors and over 120 student volunteers. Its services include advanced life support service, an ambulance and 24-hour on-call care to the Brown community, even those living off campus.
At all times, there is at least one paramedic who can provide aid during a cardiac emergency. There is also a student emergency medical technician and a student volunteer who assists the EMT by carrying bags and completing other tasks, Lapierre said.
Lapierre said Brown is "very supportive" of EMS, as evidenced by the five paid supervisors. Over Spring Weekend, the University increased this support by adding several EMS foot patrols and a second ambulance. EMS student workers, who normally work for free, were also paid for their services during Spring Weekend. Timothy Satty '09, a volunteer EMS worker, said he believes Brown should lend the same support to EMS as it did during Spring Weekend on a more regular basis.
Kate Tsunoda '08, a former EMS volunteer, said she believes the investment in EMS is worthwhile.
"An EMS staffed with students creates a unique support network that empowers and is really special," she said.
Sanderson-Roderick added that because the "the city of Providence ... already has a very stressed EMS system," students calling Providence rescue officials could experience long waits. Brown EMS, on the other hand, is "pretty quick to get on scene, in case of a true emergency," she said.
