Emergency Health Sciences faculty, graduates and students help in Harvey’s aftermath

By Kate Hunger 

Faculty, graduates and current students of the Department of Emergency Health Sciences jumped into action to provide assistance in the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey. 

Graduates of the EHS flight medic program deployed with National Guard units from many states, including Texas, New York, New Jersey, Arkansas, Nebraska, Arizona, Kansas, Mississippi and Colorado, said Leslie Hernandez, M.A.Ed., NREMT-P, director of community education for EHS. 

"Many of our flight medic graduates are back in Texas assigned to assist with the rescues, evacuations, medical care, and transport," she said. 

Seventy-five flight medic and critical care flight medic student donated blood, while critical care flight medic students gathered food and clothing donations for Houston flood victims. 

Three EHS instructors deployed to Houston. Shawn Couch is active duty U.S. Air Force, as well as a paramedic with Schertz EMS. Couch served as loadmaster the Schertz AmBus. His missions included providing medical coverage to people at the Corpus Christi State School and assisting with the evacuation of nine patients from a Corpus Christi hospital to San Antonio and of 13 patients from a Victoria hospital to Austin. 

Robert Moya helped sick and injured pediatric patients in an evacuation shelter by providing medical care. 

Debbie Hamilton, a full-time paramedic, helped with staging at an airstrip near Ingleside and provided 911 backup call assistance in Rockport and Aransas Pass. Hamilton was assigned to a mobile medical unit hospital. 

Other EHS faculty helped out by assuming duties for their colleagues and helping students schedule blood donations appointments, Hernandez said.