ROCK SPRINGS — A resident and parent brought forth some questions regarding the purchase of additional Stop the Bleed kits at the Sweetwater County School District (SCSD) No. 1 Board of Trustees special meeting Monday night.

Stop the Bleed is a program that educates people on how to act as immediate responders in emergency situations involving hemorrhaging, such as shootings.

According to the Stop the Bleed website, “Stop the Bleed, a national public awareness campaign, was launched…in October of 2015 by the White House, with a call to action to begin training more people to become immediate responders until professional help arrives.”

Cherell O’Driscoll, a parent of students in the district, spoke during the public hearing portion of the meeting to seek clarification on the cost of the kits. The kits are being purchased through an MOU with the City of Rock Springs in an amount not to exceed $54,000. The kits purchased under this program are placed in nursing offices, individual classrooms, school buses, and athletic facilities for immediate access in the event of a traumatic hemorrhaging incident. 

“I pulled the MOU from the city that says you’re going to purchase 791 individual intermediate bleeding kits from Life-Assist, and they’re $50.51 per unit…” O’Driscoll said. “If you go online to the Stop the Bleed site, they have them cheaper than what they’re being quoted to you.”

Superintendent Kelly McGovern said the quote is using figures from when they purchased kits in February of this year. She said at that time they were approximately $50 per kit. She said that the way the MOU works is the district works with one of the Rock Springs Fire Department firefighters and they work directly with the vendor to get a quote at the best price.

“When we ordered those in February that was the quote that we had at that time… the district has not received the latest quote. So what we’re asking for is permission that when that information comes available that we’re able to enter into another MOU as necessary to purchase those with the city. But that was the price that we had when we purchased them back in February,” McGovern said.

McGovern added that the funding for these kits comes from grants, as they do not have the money available in the general fund.

“The only way we’re able to purchase these is through Title IV grant funds. Otherwise, we do not have general fund money to be able to buy the kits. These came forward as a recommendation to the district from law enforcement and first responders,” she said.

Shelf Life and Trainings

O’Driscoll also pointed out the kits have a 5-year shelf life, and that those trained to use the kits have a 2-year certification and then the certification expires. This means the kits have a high potential of expiring without being used. She noted that she hopes the district never has to use them, and she understands the need for them, but she had concerns about the cost of the kits and the recertification of staff members every 2 years.

“I agree with you… A Stop the Bleed kit is something I hope we never have to use,” McGovern said. “I believe our money needs to be fiscally responsible, but I also believe we need to plan for the worst, and that includes being ready.”

McGovern said the shelf life of 5 years is a point of discussion, but the district still needs to have these kits available. She said thus far, the district has purchased the kits in small amounts at a time as funding has allowed.

“This last spring when we had the active shooter situation, before it was determined to be a hoax, thank goodness that the district is ready with the school safety efforts that we do and that we were prepared as much as we could be. I believe our law enforcement and schools handled that very well,” she said.

McGovern said the implementation of the kits includes a team of professionals who will train district staff. She said Lieutenant Rich Fisher, Steven Kourbelas with the Rock Springs Fire Department, administrators, and school nurses will conduct training for the use of the kits sometime at the start of the 2023-2024 school year.

The school board voted unanimously to approve the purchase of the additional Stop the Bleed kits in an amount not to exceed $54,000.

Other Business

The dates for the 2024 graduation ceremonies were announced during the meeting Monday night. Dates are as follows.

• Black Butte High School – Wednesday, May 22, 2024 at 7 p.m.
• Rock Springs High School – Thursday, May 23, 2024 at 6:30 p.m.
• Desert School (Wamsutter) – Wednesday, May 29, 2024 at 6 p.m.
• Farson-Eden High School – Thursday, May 30, 2024 at 6 p.m.