Rose Festival First Aid Station Volunteer
Volunteering at Rose Festival First Aid stations is an important part of our routine NET deployments each year. It's great community service and provides a lot of visibility for NET. Also, the stations are right on the route so first aid volunteers get a great view of the parade! First aid volunteers will also see other NETs in other positions; possibly in comms, or as Parade Guides.
The current policy is to staff each station with a minimum of three NETs with first aid training (or higher medical response qualifications).
Background
NET Volunteers serving at Grand Floral Parade First Aid stations goes waaay back...probably to the 1990s. Post-COVID, the GFP route shortened and we now deploy two first aid stations instead of five.
Mission
First Aid Volunteers help keep Portland Rose Festival events safe and fun by addressing paradegoers' minor injuries. Volunteers will help act as "eyes and ears" around the parade route and work with our on-site safety team to report any incidents. Responsibilities include:
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Volunteer Coordination Center (VCC)
Each parade will include at least one Volunteer Coordination Center (VCC) to coordinate volunteers and their communications. The location of a Coordination Center will be included in the Operations Plan. First aid volunteers are not required to check in at the VCC; they will be checked in either when PBEM staff drops off their supplies or over 800 MHz radio.
There will be several volunteers/staff at the VCC. First Aid Station Volunteers only need to be aware of the Parade Guide Lead. This person (a PBEM staffer) effectively serves as the Incident Commander for Parade Guides. They will have an 800 MHz radio to communicate with the Portland Emergency Coordination Center (ECC). This is the person that First Aid Volunteers will primarily communicate with throughout the event, over 800 MHz.
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What To Expect: The Operations Plan
All Parade Guide volunteers should expect to receive an electronic copy of the Operations Plan no more than three days before your shift, and a hard copy will be provided to you with station supplies. Please do not request a copy of the Operations Plan if the parade is more than three days off.
The Operations Plan is a document that has the following mission critical information:
- Parade day timeline, including check-in and check-out times;
- Location of the Volunteer Coordination Center;
- Relevant parade day phone numbers (e.g. cell phone numbers of personnel in the Coordination Center);
- Lists of required and recommended equipment;
- Review of radio protocols;
- Review of emergency procedures.
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