By Ayesha Morris
Staff Writer - The Bowie Star Newspaper
Sniper victim's doctors honored
Bowie, MD - "A gunshot wound. We need help!" a voice blared through the intercom at Bowie Health Center in the early morning of Oct. 7.
Tanya Brown had raced her nephew to the campus, where hospital staff helped put him into a wheelchair, then rushed him inside.
When emergency doctors got to the 13-year-old sniper victim from Benjamin Tasker Middle School, he was bleeding significantly from an upper abdominal wound, and was in a mild state of shock.
Within 45 minutes, the team of doctors had stabilized the boy so he could be transported to Children's National Medical Center in the District. Last week, the hospital allowed the sniper victim to finish his recovery at home after a month of around-the-clock care.
The medical team at Bowie Health Center is being credited with providing the critical care that helped to save the boy's life.
At a ceremony held last week, the American Red Cross Prince George's County Chapter presented the organization's first "Clara Barton Life Saver Award" to general surgeon Vincent Sayan, anesthesiologist Maria Escalera, and Tom Lyons, the director of emergency services.
"The Red Cross heard about us, that we'd taken care of this fellow, and knew it was beyond the services we normally provide," said Lyons. "He was a trauma victim, but in a community services room."
The health center is accustomed to handling patients with seizures, strokes and heart attacks. The sniper victim was the first time the medical team dealt with a gunshot wound of such severity, Lyons said.
After the teenager was brought in by his aunt, Escalera sedated him, hooked him up to an oxygen bag, and inserted a breathing tube, officials said. Several intravenous lines were also inserted to restore the high volume of blood the boy was losing.
"I checked his breathing and told him he was going to be okay," Escalera said this week, recalling the treatment she administered before the teenager was transferred.
Lyons credited the nurses, laboratory, and X-ray specialists who were part of the staff's team effort.
"I think we played an instrumental role in getting him transferred and did what we could to ensure a good response," said Lyons.
Among the praise-givers is County Councilwoman Audrey Scott, who advocated for the health center's construction 25 years ago.
"It is gratifying to see how Bowie Health Center is serving the community every day and see what a positive difference it's making in our community," said Scott (R-Dist. 4) of Bowie.
The shooting was linked to suspects John Allen Muhammad and John Lee Malvo, charged in connection to 19 shootings nationwide.
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