Brown Emergency Medical Services received three calls during Orientation this year, two of which required transportation to a hospital, said Amy Sanderson, manager of safety and emergency medical services.
These numbers were similar to those from Orientation last year, Sanderson said, and they represent a decrease from 2006, when there were nine transports to a hospital over the same time period. The change reflects an overall decrease in the number of EMS transports required in recent years for large-scale campus events like Spring Weekend and Sex Power God. "The number of alcohol-related calls have been dropping across the board," Sanderson said.
Before 2007, Orientation had been six days long, beginning with move-in on a Wednesday and courses beginning on the following Tuesday, Vice President for Campus Life and Student Services Margaret Klawunn said. It was shortened last year to only three days. Though there were various reasons for shortening Orientation, Klawunn said, one reason was that the longer Orientation left a lot of free time in the schedule that freshmen spent drinking.
Edward Wheeler, director of health services, said he thought that changes in Health Services staffing over the weekend may have also contributed to the lower number of transports.
- Cameron Lee
