Archbold Hosting Operation Prom Night at Brookwood School

On Friday, March 10, Archbold, in partnership with Brookwood School, Thomas County Emergency Services, Thomas County Sheriff’s Office and other local partners, will host an Operation Prom Night on Brookwood’s campus.

Operation Prom Night is an interactive event intended for high school students and will focus on the possible consequences of drinking and driving.

“It’s important that young people know the impact their choices can have on their safety and the safety of others,” said Kelli Vaughn, Archbold trauma program manager.

The event will involve a simulated car crash that will include local nursing students made up to mock injuries sustained in a car crash, an emergency call to E-911 and a mock field sobriety test for one of the participating nursing students.

“We will use a real car and the nursing students will be made up to look like they have sustained real-life injuries,” said Vaughn. “We want this to be as real as possible for the students who are observing the event to help drive our point home.”

March is the start of prom season for many Georgia high schools, which makes it an important time for outreach initiatives like Operation Prom Night for underage drinking prevention, drunk driving prevention, and the promotion of safe driving practices. According to Mothers Against Drunk Driving, car crashes are still the leading cause of death in teenagers.

“Prom is a wonderful experience for our students,” said Dr. Randy Watts, Brookwood School Headmaster. “We want this experience to help them understand the risks that are associated with destructive decisions. I am so grateful for the many resources that we have in Thomas County and believe that our students will benefit from seeing how our law enforcement and first responders work together in emergency situations.”

Archbold routinely partners with local law enforcement and first responders to simulate external events for training and educational purposes. This year, the hospital has worked with Brookwood, first responders and community partners for weeks to prepare for this event.

Operation Prom Night will take place near the football field at the Brookwood School. The scenario will involve the Archbold Trauma Department, Brookwood high school students and staff and Thomas County Emergency Services. Law enforcement and first responders will respond to the call to E-911, arriving on the scene to assess and control the simulated situation.

“Community members may see or hear response vehicles responding to the E-911 call around the Brookwood School campus. We want to stress that this is a simulated event, and we will be in full control of the situation,” said Vaughn.

Similar events have been held at Thomasville and Thomas County schools but this will be the first time this event will be held at Brookwood School.

For more information about this event, please call Kelli Vaughn at 229.228.8260.