Strengthening Disaster Response Skills and Volunteer Mindset Through the Tiga Serangkai University PMI KSR Field Training

This study addresses the critical gap between classroom theoretical knowledge and practical, psychological preparedness among university humanitarian volunteers facing real disaster scenarios. The purpose of this community service program was to comprehensively evaluate and strengthen prospective volunteers' emergency first aid, evacuation, and disaster mitigation competencies, while building mental resilience, discipline, and team solidarity through official membership induction. A modified experiential learning approach using integrated outdoor field simulations was conducted with 29 prospective student members of the Indonesian Red Cross Volunteer Corps (KSR PMI) at Tiga Serangkai University. The methodology comprised three structured phases: preliminary cognitive classroom instruction, outdoor field simulations featuring disaster scenarios under psychological stress tests (evaluating triage, wound dressing, CPR, stretcher assembly, and victim transport), and a comprehensive evaluation process using standardized emergency response rubrics alongside qualitative descriptive analysis. The results demonstrated a substantial improvement in technical and psychomotor capabilities, with over 85% of participants (25 out of 29 students) executing emergency standard operating procedures swiftly and accurately under stress. Furthermore, behavioral observations revealed a shift from initial miscommunication to strong collective coordination and camaraderie, effectively neutralizing individual egos. All 29 participants successfully satisfied the volunteer qualification standards, culminating in formal member induction. The novelty of this research lies in its dual-component framework, which concurrently couples technical psychomotor skill testing with psychological stress conditioning in open-terrain simulations, rather than conducting isolated skill drills. This approach effectively transforms passive cognitive awareness into operational resilience and offers a scalable training model for campus-based disaster response units, with periodic recertification recommended for long-term capability maintenance.