Medical Amnesty and Good Samaritan policies in use

By Brooke Boniface

A girl is hunched over in the back of a car, her hair disheveled and her head supported by both of her hands.

One authoritative young man tries to coax the girl to allow him to call for medical assistance. Her slurred response can be heard by all those in the vicinity:

"No I'm fine I swear. Don't call the EMTs, I'm serious. I'm fine."

A new face walks up and asks, "What happened over there?"

Someone replies, "That girl is drunk, hit her head, was unconscious and then peed her pants. Now she and her friends wont let us take her to the hospital or call the EMT's."

This situation, where someone's health may be in danger due to excessive alcohol consumption, is not new to most students at Santa Clara.

Almost every one of us has been either the girl in the car, her friends, or one of the many people standing and observing the madness that can ensue when teenagers and alcohol collide.

I cannot speak authoritatively as to why this particular girl and her group of friends chose not to follow the advice of the young man - who happened to also be an SCU EMT - and simply call for medical assistance.

However, often times the reason comes down to fear. Fear that you will get in trouble for being too drunk, whether you are the person calling or the person being called for.

The answer to this problem is a set of twin policies recently adopted by Santa Clara: medical amnesty and good samaritan.

Medical amnesty, according to the Santa Clara Wellness Center website, is the reduction of judicial consequences for students who receive medical attention due to alcohol intoxication and/or alcohol poisoning.

Good samaritan, according to the Santa Clara Wellness Center website, is the elimination of judicial consequences for a student/students who may be under the influence of alcohol and who make(s) a good-faith call for medical help on the behalf of a fellow student.

These policies are fairly new at Santa Clara and many students may be unaware of their existence. The students involved in the aforementioned incident may have been more willing to call the EMT's had they known that their actions in assistance of their friend would not be punished.

I applaud the university for adopting policies which, in my mind, have no downside. College students are going to drink. College students are sometimes going to drink in excess.

The policies merely provide a path of least resistance to saving a friend. No longer is there the obstacle of "What if I get in trouble? What if my friend gets in trouble?" Students should no longer think twice about coming to the aid of their peers.

Medical amnesty and good samaritan policy aside, however, if someone hits their head, is too drunk or is somehow medically in danger, call the EMTs or get them to a hospital.

There is no excuse for putting someone else's life in danger. And for what? Because you don't want your parents to know you drink?

These reasons sound trivial and unimportant when you realize that someone could die if you do not make those life saving calls.

So next time you see someone in bad shape: stop, call for medical help, and breathe easy knowing that Santa Clara has the foresight to allow such selfless behavior, without punishment.

Brooke Boniface is a junior political science and history double major and the editor of the opinion section.