By: Jason Euler
Festivals are a time of freedom and fun. Festivals are a time to let loose and throw your inhibitions to the wind. At the end of the day, a festival is just one giant party. However, many times at festivals we see moments where our fellow festival goers maybe party a little too hard. One beautiful thing about festivals is that everyone there is usually looking out for each other and taking care of each other whether it be giving your friend or a stranger a stick of gum or just stopping to check on someone who looks like they’re having a tough time.
Taking care of each other is essential at festivals. It creates a sense of community and creates a safer environment for everyone to enjoy themselves a little more and feel comfortable. Too many times unfortunately, people try to stick out tough situations instead of getting the proper help and attention they need. Every festival has extremely well-trained medical personnel on site. Sometimes it seems that these people are really taken for granted, and we tend not to realize just how important they are to be a part of the festival. Everyone thinks a medical emergency is something that would never happen to them or one of their friends until it does.
There seems to be a common misperception in the festival community that these people are here to get you in trouble or that you shouldn’t go to the medical tent because you’ll end up being punished for whatever got you there. These people are not the police. The medical professionals are not there to get anyone in trouble. They are there to help and make sure everyone is safe and that their health is being monitored if anything were to go wrong.
These men and women that protect us get little to no credit and are usually an afterthought whenever you walk by the medical tent. Yet if an emergency is ever to happen they are there on the spot to protect and get us to safety. It’s something we as a community need to come together for and show a little more appreciation toward because you never know when you or someone you love may need their help. As a community we need to be smarter about this and utilize them in a circumstance if we’ve had a little “too much fun” or just are not feeling well.
Beyond being grateful for the medical personnel on site, we each have a responsibility to keep our fellow festival goers safe. One movement that I believe could potentially save someone’s life would be to work to getting many in our community CPR certified. Getting certified can cost as little as twenty-five dollars. It can be the difference between someone living and someone dying. We each have a responsibility to keep each other safe and put our health at the forefront of our community. You never know when it may come in handy and you could be the difference for someone.
Creating more awareness for our medical professionals at festivals and understanding they are there to help and not to get us in trouble is important to promote. Beyond that, taking initiative and working to prepare yourself to be able to help in an emergency is something I believe our community could really come together around. If even one person who reads this article joins me in becoming CPR Certified, then we have already begun a movement.
Medical professionals are there to help. The health and safety of ourselves and our friends are priority number one. They are not the police. They aren’t there to put us in trouble. So next time you’re not feeling so well or one of your friends has a tough moment, don’t be afraid to head to the medical tent. You’ll find help and safety which could be a big difference in your life or a loved one’s life.
For more information on becoming CPR Certified, please visit the Red Cross or the American Heart Association website to find where you can get certified today: https://www.redcross.org/take-a-class/cpr?latitude=33.3703197&longitude=-112.5837766
http://www.heart.org/HEARTORG/CPRAndECC/CPR_UCM_001118_SubHomePage.jsp
Be the difference in someone’s life. You never know who you may save!
