Year 10 P.A.R.T.Y. Program

The P.A.R.T.Y. (Prevent Alcohol and Riskrelated Trauma in Youth) Program is a dynamic, interactive health promotion program for teenagers aimed at promoting injury prevention through reality education. Each year, our Year 10 students take part in this program and Rachel Feldman told me about this year's excursion.

RACHEL FELDMAN year 10 student On the second day of Term 3, Wednesday 13 July, a group of eager Year 10s hopped on a bus and were driven to the Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital to participate in the P.A.R.T.Y. Program. We spent a whole day learning about, and participating in, simulations regarding 'prevention of alcohol and riskrelated trauma in youth' (P.A.R.T.Y.). The day was run by nurses and staff from the trauma unit as well as other support and medical staff involved in rehabilitating patients who have been involved in accidents. The P.A.R.T.Y. Program focused on teaching us about dangerous activities and consequences from risky behaviour like drinking alcohol, drugs and irresponsible driving. We were encouraged to spread our new-found knowledge with our peers and the community. The lessons we learnt that day are etched into our minds and will hopefully prevent poor decisions in the future. Afterwards, we were able to share the key lessons with our cohort at our Year Level Meeting. The key message that we shared with our peers were that choices have consequences, and risky behaviour increases the chance of injuries that can impact both ourselves and our families. The P.A.R.T.Y. Program was a great excursion and we are grateful to the nurses and speakers who presented to us. From the Queensland Health website:

In Australia, traumatic injury is the leading cause of death in people under the age of 45. Young people in this age group are grossly over represented in injury and trauma statistics, both in terms of death and long term disability. Road trauma is still one of the most common causes of mortality and catastrophic injury in youth. When you attend a P.A.R.T.Y. Program you will see what it's really like to be a trauma patient. Through DVD’s, PowerPoint presentations and interactive simulated clinical scenarios, participants will meet health professionals, emergency services personnel (e.g. ambulance officers), and people who have experienced trauma and survived, often with significant disabilities.