'So proud of her': School nurse thanked for helping save student in Magruder HS shooting

MONTGOMERY COUNTY, Md. (7News) — A school nurse at Colonel Zadok Magruder High School is being credited for helping to save the life of a 15-year-old male student after he was shot on Friday.

Montgomery County Executive Marc Elrich wrote in a statement, “I am grateful to the principal, other faculty, staff, and students of Magruder for their quick and decisive action to contain the situation, which led to no one else being injured or harmed. I am especially grateful to Magruder's School Health Nurse Megan Wilson for her lifesaving actions that directly helped save the injured student. I also want to thank the Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Service, Police and Sheriff’s Departments for their response and handling of the situation. This was a very delicate situation, but it was dealt with by a group of professionals who did what they have been trained to do. Lives were saved because of their efforts, and for this I am grateful.”

School nurses within Montgomery County Public Schools are employees of the Montgomery County Department of Health.

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All health staff is trained for an active shooter situation and they're trained on how to use a Stop the Bleed Kit, according toMark Hodge, Senior Nurse Administrator, Montgomery County Department of Health.

He said this is the kit that the Magruder High School nurse, Megan Wilson, used to help save the student’s life until he was taken to a hospital.

“It’s amazing to me the number of people that walked up to her just while I was visiting for the hour, I was there came up to her and thanked her and we're so proud of her,” Hodge said.

These kits have been in every Montgomery County Public School since 2019 thanks to a grant.

“They were put in the schools potentially for a mass shooting event,” Hodge said. “Unfortunately, we are seeing an increase in this and knew that Montgomery County was not immune for that.”

The kits include things like a tourniquet, gloves, gauze, and compression bandages all in one bag. This way, during an emergency, health staff does not need to try to gather all the supplies they need. Instead, everything they need is already together.

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“It’s a great kit,” Hodge said. “I think the nurse not having to think about what she needs, all she needs to think about is grabbing the Stop the Bleed Kit, which is exactly what she did and rushing off with that kit and ready to use it as soon as she was there made it much easier.”

Hodge said because of what happened they are doing some training refreshers next Tuesday since there is no school that day for students.

“So, we’re going to use that day to do some training refreshers, so on the Stop the Bleed Kit, on some school safety measures that can be taken on, mental health in schools, how to take care of yourself, how to understand what the students are going through. Not just because of the shooting, but because of everything that’s been going on. I think we’ve seen a huge increase in mental health issues across the country because of COVID.” Hodge said.