A junior at Princeton High School quickly responded to a distressed student last week.

Madison Pouncil, a student trainer, said she was “pretty calm” when responding because she quickly recognized the student needed assistance after she consulted with an athletic trainer on campus. At the time, she was preparing for a volleyball game, when she heard what she called a panicked cry from another student in the girls locker room.

Initially, Pouncil thought the student had a bad day at school or received some bad personal news, but after checking in she said it was something worse. Pouncil said she noticed a student who appeared to be panicking and potentially having an allergic reaction.

“She was pacing back and forth,” Pouncil said. “It wasn’t a case of her ignoring me, but having a lot going on. I told her that I would take her to see the trainer.”

Eventually, Pouncil took the student to the trainer, who agreed with her diagnosis that an allergic reaction was occurring. However, both Pouncil and the trainer were unsure if any treatment needed to be administered or what the student’s needs were.

While sitting in the training room, the student went back to the locker room where she began throwing up, said Pouncil, adding that she proceeded to grab the student’s phone and speak with the person on the other side of the call.

She noticed that it was the student’s mother on the phone and consulted with her about next steps, especially because the trainer would need parental permission to administer a treatment.

“We tried to give her as much privacy as possible, but we were still trying to give her the treatment for an allergic reaction as soon as possible before it could get worse,” Pouncil said.

Fortunately for Pouncil, she had also recently learned about the school’s emergency action protocol, which covered what to do in the event first responders needed to be let into the building.

“It was really good that we just learned about it,” Pouncil said. “We had already learned about anaphylaxis and the protocol for administering treatment for an allergic reaction; especially when it is that bad.”

Part of that emergency action plan is to call 911.

Thanks to Pouncil’s efforts, the student was treated by the athletic trainer and loaded onto an ambulance after first responders arrived.

For Pouncil, it also solidified her desire to study to become an athletic trainer because of a desire to help people.

“I knew I wanted to help people but I didn’t know how,” Pouncil said. “Becoming a doctor is too much and athletic training is really what I want to do.”

Although she helped potentially save a life, Pouncil remains humble when discussing her reaction to the emergency.

“It felt pretty cool,” Pouncil said of her efforts. “It didn’t feel like I was saving someone’s life; more like I was at the right place at the right time to help somebody.”