Teachers learn to ‘Stop the Bleed' in White Plains

With less than a week to go before hundreds of students return to the classroom, teachers in White Plains got a lesson of their own on how to save lives.

Teachers from the school district teamed up with staff from White Plains Hospital to learn how to “Stop the Bleed,” a training program on how to stop blood flow from gunshot wounds. 

“They need to assess the wounds first and identify exactly where the injury is and what needs to be done, so we try and teach them the characteristics of that. Then we teach them about applying a tourniquet,” said Bernadette Amicucci, Director of Clinical Education for White Plains Hospital.

“This is not really a program just for a mass casualty incident or an active shooter scenario, but it’s really teaching skill sets on how to save a life from a life-threatening bleed,” said Dr. Farrukh Jafri of White Plains Hospital. “That life-threatening bleed may be from a workplace accident, it may be from a car accident.”

“I’m mentally prepared to not just run and hide,” said Nisse Varghese, a special education teacher at White Plains High School. “I’m prepared to do whatever I can to help save a life.”