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Stevenson’s applied-health class emphasizes communication, cultural competence and hands-on emergency skills
Summary
Teachers told the board the applied-health elective gives students American Red Cross certifications, emphasizes closed-loop communication, and added lessons on communicating with diverse populations; staff cited survey results showing high perceived usefulness.
Abby Austin, manager of Physical Welfare, and applied-health teachers Ross Petchaskey and Jill Lippman told the board that Stevenson High School’s applied-health elective focuses on hands-on emergency skills and on expanding communication training to make lessons more useful in students’ daily lives and future health careers.
The class covers four assessed skills the presenters listed: professional rescue (including CPR, with American Red Cross CPR certification), injury management (first aid, anaphylaxis and EpiPen use, bloodborne-pathogens training, asthma emergency response and life‑threatening‑bleeding control), anatomy and terminology, and communication. Teachers said communication training deliberately includes debriefs and structured practice (for example, closed‑loop communication during rescues), exercises such as marshmallow‑challenge or partner problems, and scenario work that asks students to adapt explanations for patients who speak different languages or come from diverse cultural backgrounds.
Why it matters: Staff said the class prepares students for health‑care careers while also connecting those skills to everyday interactions (for example, using closed‑loop language with parents or teammates). Presenters cited survey results: 99% of students said the class would be useful in the future, 61% said they expected to use the ideas in daily life, and a recent follow‑up reported 77% of students answering “most definitely” when asked if they were using the communication skills in their lives now.
Teachers described a recent “mass casualty” simulation in which the class coordinated triage and multi‑person rescues with school officers; teachers said the simulation is debriefed and used to reinforce communication and teamwork. Staff said they want to add more lessons that explicitly address communication with diverse populations and cultural competence, citing research and student‑video clips used in class to discuss disparities in health care.
Ending: Presenters asked the board to consider the applied‑health work as part of broader SEL and career‑pathway goals; staff said they will report progress again and look to expand spring enrollment and articulation opportunities with partner colleges.
