Warwick North Little League joined together with Pilgrim High School’s Lifesaver Program last week to teach its coaches safety protocols and procedures to handle any on-field health issues that may occur in the upcoming season.

Pilgrim’s Lifesaver Program was established in 2021 by physical education teacher and Red Cross Instructor Lisa Tamburini. The pathway program teaches students lifesaving skills and gives them a chance to give back to the community in meetings like this one.

After seeing incidents such as Buffalo Bills player Damar Hamlin going into cardiac arrest on the field last season, Warwick North president Sean Wiggins and his staff decided to pursue greater knowledge of safety protocols as the new season approaches.

“Because of the Damar Hamlin situation, we wanted to make sure that our coaches had the proper certifications and to have a better program than what we had. We did a lot of online programs but felt that they were not enough. We wanted to get a little bit more in depth with our coaches in case if on the field, anything ever happens,” Wiggins said.

Members of West Warwick Little League also made the trip, which included over 30 coaches and league administers attending overall.

“We work with Warwick North during the season, the offseason, and we’re fortunate enough to know the right people. They extended the invitation and it can’t be stated enough how important this is, for the coaches to be prepared for the unlikely event that something bad happens on the field,” said West Warwick president Stephen Vinton.

Tamburini and a handful of her students led the session and taught participants various lifesaving skills. Some of the items discussed included recognizing unconsciousness, determining breathing, putting someone in recovery, performing CPR, helping someone that is choking, identifying severe bleeding, using pressure bandages and tunicates, among others.

Tamburini was thrilled to see her students have the chance to give back and to put their knowledge to use.

“It’s what I strive for all the time. To have this opportunity for the students to take what they’ve learned in the classroom, then share it, instruct or give feedback to those people learning it, it’s priceless. Everything we do in the classroom is simulation, so to have actual people and not just mannequins, it’s exciting,” Tamburini said.

The Rhode Island Department of Education recently approved the Lifesaver program as a new career and technical education program, and in September, it will transition into a full EMT course.

“My students are highly skilled, highly knowledgeable in life saving skills. We’re very excited to work with people in the community because that is what we strive for, giving back to the community. This is an opportunity that we’re all over and we want to do more of it,” Tamburini said.

Wiggins and the staff at North hope to continue to seek ways to protect their players moving forward.

“Concussions have become huge, but not many people focus on the CPR element. I’ve seen people lose their breath and pass out. Luckily we’ve had people there to help, but not every coach is certified. When you think about big organizations like ours, you need to think, ‘How are we going to react?’ instead of hoping there’s a nurse in the stands,” said Wiggins. “Since COVID, safety has been at the forefront at Warwick North. We want to expand the safety of the kids.”

By ALEX SPONSELLER

Warwick North Little League joined together with Pilgrim High School’s Lifesaver Program last week to teach its coaches safety protocols and procedures to handle any on-field health issues that may occur in the upcoming season.

Pilgrim’s Lifesaver Program was established in 2021 by physical education teacher and Red Cross Instructor Lisa Tamburini. The pathway program teaches students lifesaving skills and gives them a chance to give back to the community in meetings like this one.

After seeing incidents such as Buffalo Bills player Damar Hamlin going into cardiac arrest on the field last season, Warwick North president Sean Wiggins and his staff decided to pursue greater knowledge of safety protocols as the new season approaches.

“Because of the Damar Hamlin situation, we wanted to make sure that our coaches had the proper certifications and to have a better program than what we had. We did a lot of online programs but felt that they were not enough. We wanted to get a little bit more in depth with our coaches in case if on the field, anything ever happens,” Wiggins said.

Members of West Warwick Little League also made the trip, which included over 30 coaches and league administers attending overall.

“We work with Warwick North during the season, the offseason, and we’re fortunate enough to know the right people. They extended the invitation and it can’t be stated enough how important this is, for the coaches to be prepared for the unlikely event that something bad happens on the field,” said West Warwick president Stephen Vinton.

Tamburini and a handful of her students led the session and taught participants various lifesaving skills. Some of the items discussed included recognizing unconsciousness, determining breathing, putting someone in recovery, performing CPR, helping someone that is choking, identifying severe bleeding, using pressure bandages and tunicates, among others.

Tamburini was thrilled to see her students have the chance to give back and to put their knowledge to use.

“It’s what I strive for all the time. To have this opportunity for the students to take what they’ve learned in the classroom, then share it, instruct or give feedback to those people learning it, it’s priceless. Everything we do in the classroom is simulation, so to have actual people and not just mannequins, it’s exciting,” Tamburini said.

The Rhode Island Department of Education recently approved the Lifesaver program as a new career and technical education program, and in September, it will transition into a full EMT course.

“My students are highly skilled, highly knowledgeable in life saving skills. We’re very excited to work with people in the community because that is what we strive for, giving back to the community. This is an opportunity that we’re all over and we want to do more of it,” Tamburini said.

Wiggins and the staff at North hope to continue to seek ways to protect their players moving forward.

“Concussions have become huge, but not many people focus on the CPR element. I’ve seen people lose their breath and pass out. Luckily we’ve had people there to help, but not every coach is certified. When you think about big organizations like ours, you need to think, ‘How are we going to react?’ instead of hoping there’s a nurse in the stands,” said Wiggins. “Since COVID, safety has been at the forefront at Warwick North. We want to expand the safety of the kids.”