US Embassy Partners with Rajshahi Fire Service to Build Capacity of Medical First Responders

The US Embassy Dhaka conducted its second Medical First Responder Seminar (MFRS) of 2021 from 22-25 February where 10 Fire Service and Civil Defence (FSCD) Officers from the Rajshahi FSCD Division participated.

In the four-day seminar, participants conducted practical exercises, and each received an emergency first-aid kit with medical supplies sourced from Bangladesh, reads a press release issued by the embassy.

In addition to strengthening the capacity of local first responders from Bangladesh agencies to respond to emergencies and natural disaster situations, these seminars highlighted the US commitment to Bangladesh's national security and reflected the important security relationship between the United States and Bangladesh.

During the seminar, Mehedi Hassan, a graduate of previous MFRS courses, helped conduct the seminar as part of a "train the trainer" initiative aimed at increasing Bangladesh first responder services' capacity to train and equip their own personnel.

Mehedi, a 2016 MFRS participant, is a basic training instructor for the Bangladesh Police Academy and has been an assistant instructor for nine previous seminars.

Since the start of the programme in 2014, more than 620 first responders from across Bangladesh have participated in the programme. The Bangladesh FSCD is the primary first responder for emergency incidents within Bangladesh.

This MFRS strengthened the FSCD's first responder capacity by providing medical supplies and teaching critical life-saving skills, including how to stabilize accident and disaster casualties and treat injuries such as massive haemorrhages, blocked airways, and hypothermia.

The seminar culminated with a hands-on mass trauma practical exercise where students evaluated, stabilized, and prepared casualties for movement to hospitals, simulating real-life first response duties.

The MFRS is one of many initiatives of the US government during this 50th anniversary of Bangladesh independence to promote greater cooperation, dialogue, and mutual understanding between Bangladesh and the United States, and a strong partnership to help ensure a free and open Indo-Pacific region.