Purdue University Fire Department, School of Nursing partner to provide students real-world experiences

Each morning starts the same for firefighters with the Purdue University Fire Department — they attend a daily meeting and share a warm breakfast. In more recent years, there have been some fresh faces at the breakfast table as senior nursing students have joined the routine. A newly established partnership between PUFD and Purdue’s School of Nursing provides a clinical opportunity to observe firefighters during their shifts, specifically as they respond to emergency medical calls across the West Lafayette campus. 

Along with standard fire services, PUFD provides medical services, as every firefighter is either a certified EMT or licensed paramedic. Senior nursing students enrolled in a public health course ride along in the ambulances to observe prehospital patient care.

“Before they get to ride along, we brief the students on what an emergency call for our department typically looks like,” explained Chief Brad Anderson. “We explain how our emergency system is activated and the actual process of how we deliver patient care. They really learn a lot before they even hop in an ambulance.”

Once in the ambulances, students witness the patient care the department provides. This may include an initial evaluation, initial treatment and the process to hand off the patient to a hospital or other in-patient facility. Anderson said that with a large campus population, the department receives a wide variety of calls, which is beneficial for the nursing students to witness. 

“During the academic year, campus is busy, which means we are busy,” Anderson said. “In one day, they may see anything from a fire alarm to a personal injury crash, so they experience it all.”

The partnership is unique for a nursing program because Purdue is the only Big Ten university with a fire department. It is also a popular choice as nursing students tend to ask for the experience for their clinical rotations. While students do not actually administer patient care, the collaboration enhances their learning experience.

“This clinical experience helps students learn to communicate effectively, coordinate care and leverage each profession’s unique skills and expertise for the benefit of patient outcomes,” said Abidemi Mary Ajuwon, clinical assistant professor in the School of Nursing. “This partnership also allows students to engage directly with community members, promote health literacy and address health disparities in underserved populations.” 

With the program’s success, there are plans to continue to offer it for the foreseeable future. “We’ve had several nursing students come back to visit, saying it was one of their favorite experiences at Purdue,” Anderson said. “We have a special comradery here at the department, and the students get to see and live that while they are with us. It is something both groups really enjoy.”

PUFD is part of the Administrative Operations organization, which provides the university with safe, reliable and transformative services. Providing students with the opportunity to learn and have real-world experiences is just one of the many ways the organization helps power Purdue.