Policy changes result in fewer EMS calls

The administration’s charge to shift an alcohol-centric campus culture is enduring so far this academic year.

The amount of emergencies involving alcohol poisoning has declined, Duke Police Chief John Dailey said, adding that overall there has been less irresponsible drinking on campus than in previous years.

“We have seen fewer alcohol-related medical calls over the past few months than we did during the same period last year,” Dailey wrote in an email Monday. “We’ve had 67 for January to September 2011—last year, the total for the [corresponding] time was 78.”

There have been approximately 82 EMS calls since the start of this academic year, senior Ryan Lipes, director of Duke Emergency Medical Services, said, adding that there was no unusual rise in calls during orientation.

“Orientation week was a fairly average week for EMS calls,” Lipes wrote in an email Monday. “We had 22 EMS calls—six of which were alcohol-related.”

Duirng the week of Sept. 12—the first full-week groups were allowed the have section parties—there were only five alcohol-related EMS calls, Dailey wrote in an email Wednesday. This is less than the three previous weeks, respectively.

Recent policy changes—such as the prohibiting section parties in the first three weeks of school as opposed to the first two weeks—are a direct result of the University’s efforts to lessen alcohol’s pervasiveness on campus, Vice President for Student Affairs Larry Moneta said. These policies have so far been successful in lowering the amount of alcohol-related emergencies, though some students have expressed concerns that the policies could alter Duke’s social scene.

“We are still deep in the midst of a transformation that tries to de-emphasize alcohol as an essential social lubricant,” Moneta said. “This is just another part of a broader intervention.”

“It seems that there have been more incidents of RAs writing up students this year, across the campus,” said senior Dani Roselius, president of Mirecourt—a selective living group. “This may have been because of the new restrictions on group events during the first two weeks of school.”

Joe Gonzalez, associate dean for residence life, said RAs have not been told to enforce policy differently this year, though he added that there has been a slight increase in the number of documentations so far this year.

“It is not my observation that RAs are being more strict,” he said. “They do appear to be doing an outstanding job in the situations they are confronting.”

Roselius added that she supported the restrictions on section parties because it gave freshman a better opportunity to meet people outside of the predominant social scene.

Junior Ming Jiu Li, an RA on East Campus, wrote in an email Tuesday that RAs’ enforcement policies have not changed at all, adding that he has not come across more incidents than last year.

“I don’t think I mind the role of alcohol in Duke’s culture,” said Suvayan Roy, a freshman. “It exposes a lot of things you need to be exposed to when going into the world, and shielding college students doesn’t make sense.”

Ultimately, Duke’s policy changes have to do with health and safety, Moneta said, adding that making these changes will not be easy.

“It’s not like I can flip a switch and the problem is solved,” he said. “We’ve been systematically working with enlightened student leaders on these problems. We’ve even been draconian when we have to with things like Tailgate. But you know every year we turn over 25 percent of the undergraduate student body, so every year we start with a new batch.”