Saratoga Race Course medical facilities, Saratoga Springs
The sport of horse racing is filled with dangers, and this is the reason why it attracts widespread criticism. The horses and the jockeys, both are prone to injuries on the race track. However, the management of the Saratoga Race Course has always taken care of the horses and their jockeys that run on the track and that contributes to its epic popularity in the country for the sport of horse racing. It is a record at the Saratoga Springs that every successful race is followed by an ambulance.
There is a chase ambulance always available in case any jockey falls over his horse and hurts himself during or after the race. The ambulance has a professional paramedic staff along with a first aid kit and medicines to treat the injured. This week the ambulance service was under Ed Marchand.
Marchand told correspondents that the paramedic staff is very vigilant throughout the race and remains so until the last jockey moves into the jockey room to sign the autographs. The horses under the jockeys are seen running on the track by the paramedic crew through binoculars. The jumpy or nervous horses are spotted by the members of the staff in the beginning of the race and then are kept under special observation because these are the horses which are thought to be the potential trouble makers.
Marchand, also said that if something goes wrong with the horse and it causes the jockey to fall off it, it just happens in a split of a second and so the staff cannot stop viewing the position of the horses at any time during the race. He also added that the young and relatively inexperienced horses on the track cause a lot of problems for the jockeys and the trainers. Most of the jockeys that get injured on the race course are the ones that have fallen off from the jumpy, nervous and young colts.
As the race proceeds, the van with the paramedic staff moves along slowly along the whole length of the track across which the horses are running. The dirt on the Saratoga Race Course is layered with four and a half inch thick sand and silt. The round of the racecourse does not take more than 72 seconds, Marchand told the correspondents.
The paramedic crew under Marchand, have treated two injured jockeys, and taken them to the health centres, so far this year at the Saratoga Race Course. On the other hand two other jockeys were hospitalized while they were training at the race course. One of the injured jockeys was kicked in the stomach by his own horse at the paddock of the Saratoga Race Track. There were several other horse riders that fell off their horses but luckily for them, they did not require any medical treatment since the injuries received by them were just minor and not significant.
Marchand also said that the more difficult the ride is for the jockeys, the more they get paid and thus most of the horse riders resist the injuries and do not make it a big deal and try their best not to make a trip to the hospital. He also added that it is a part of their job and that is what they get the money for.
The paramedic staff under Marchand, is responsible to pick up the fallen and injured jockeys from the race track, while Michelle Banghart is the head of the team that guides the injured horse riders through the medical procedure. Michelle is a registered nurse at the Saratoga Race Course and helps the horse riders to get the right medical treatment.
The nurse is on duty every time a race is scheduled to take place on the celebrated race track. Michelle has access to the previous medical treatments each jockey has been subjected to and thus takes care of all the health aspects of the rider under treatment. Michelle Banghart is a seasoned and an experienced nurse at the race course and has been working with the management of the Saratoga Race Course for nine years now.
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