Pierce College is a safe campus, but violent acts, such as shootings, can still happen. According to Sandy Hook Promise, 12 children are murdered and 32 are injured daily in America. At this rate, it is only a matter of when the next incident will occur.
LifeSecure said that a gunshot victim can bleed out and die within less than five minutes, making it essential that gunshot wound kits are readily available on campus.
The cost of each kit that includes professionally approved items is approximately $200. Most kits contain but are not limited to: nitrile gloves, EMT scissors, QuickClot hemostatic gauze, gauze pads, Blood Stopper bandages, self-adherent wrap, SWAT-T tourniquet, permanent marker, petroleum gauze, medical tape, moist towelettes and biohazard bags.
This is a small price to pay to keep someone alive until they get to the hospital. Government funding should be sought to cover the cost of the kits and the necessary training to use these resources for employees and students at Pierce.
During the Saugus High School shooting in Santa Clarita, a student ran into a classroom after being shot. The teacher had a gunshot wound kit and saved the child’s life.
According to World Population Review, there have been 164 school shootings in California in 2023. It is still March.
Providing gunshot wound kits that are typically located by the door or teacher’s desk will improve anxiety levels for students, faculty, and staff. Equipped with supplies for gunshot wounds, these kits help prevent people from bleeding out if they are impaled by a bullet.
After the 2019 shooting at Saugus High School in Santa Clarita, a couple of students who survived created kits specifically meant to be used in case of another school shooting.
Pierce needs to be prepared and take responsibility for providing as much protection as possible for every member of the Pierce community. Students, faculty and staff need to be aware of these kits, which could help increase in-person attendance because students will feel safer.
Who would want to have the deaths of others haunting them at night?
By providing gunshot wound kits, there will be less of a chance that Pierce will be on that long list of schools that have lost lives due to shooters.
