Get Involved: Stop the Bleed
Knowing how to provide CPR, first aid, and bleeding control are core life skills that demand more focus in our daily life.
Every year, 60 thousand Americans die from various forms of hemorrhage (Holland, 2018). Major causes of hemorrhage include car accidents, workplace machinery accidents, firearm or other weapon injuries, and assaults. While things like internal bleeding cannot be managed outside of some specific medications and operating room procedures, external bleeding is something that we can all manage. While some injuries are too severe for bystanders to handle., every little bit and every little drop helps when it comes to life threatening bleeding emergencies.
Bleeding emergencies are any type of bleeding, from any cause, that could cause a severe threat to life and limb. If the bleeding is not controlled, victims could die before EMS providers ever arrive. Patient outcomes are significantly more positive when early recognition of a serious bleed occurs and is controlled.
I present to you two different scenarios - one in which early bleeding control is applied, and one without.
A young woman driving home from work one day is T-boned at an intersection on a rainy day. The woman’s sedan spins out of control, crashing into a tree on a ridge beside the main road. In the process, a large shard of glass is sprung free from the back passenger seat and makes it way to the front of the car. It slices deep along her arm, lacerating an artery. She begins to bleed steadily, and quickly loses consciousness. By the time an ambulance from the local EMS service arrives, she has already decompensated and entered an advanced state of shock. She barely makes it, and requires intensive resuscitation while she’s transported to the local hospital. She survives, but requires an intensive physical therapy and recovery period.
Alternatively, a young woman driving home from work one day is T-boned at an intersection on a rainy day. The woman’s sedan spins out of control, crashing into a tree on the side of the road. In the process, a large shard of glass strikes the woman’s arm, cutting deep and lacerating an artery. She bleeds steadily and loses consciousness in the seat of her car. A bystander driving by notices the car on the edge of the road, calls 911, and then makes his way to the car to take a closer look. He is able to safely get the door open, notes the bleeding, and starts to apply pressure. When that fails, he opts for the tourniquet he keeps in his glovebox first aid kit. He applies the tourniquet, stopping the bleed and saving her life in the process. EMS arrives shortly after and takes over care, thanking him for his help. The woman is transported to a trauma center, and is discharged after relatively minor treatment. She is scheduled for physical therapy, and goes on to a live a normal life.
There are a series of common items within every American home - detergent, tylenol, some band-aids, and et cetera. We at EMSAware want to make a tourniquet and bleeding control supplies a part of that common list. Accidents such as lawn mower accidents, car collisions, and accidental cuts during cooking are part of everyday life. While they are normal and to be expected, they can also have disastrous effects. However, they don’t have to claim lives like they do every day in the United States. WIth public education and outreach, we can reduce the number of trauma and hemorrhage related deaths.
EMS Aware encourages all readers to get involved and search for a Stop the Bleed class near them. Stop The Bleed is a Department of Defense initiative aimed at stopping hemorrhage and trauma-related deaths in the advent of the 2015 Sandy Hook Shooting. These courses focus on basic bleeding control skills such as applying pressure to wounds, recognizing a life-threatening bleed, and tourniqueting. With these basic steps, many trauma deaths can be avoided. They can be done in-person or even online.
Not all heroes wear capes - some are just ordinary citizens that take the time to learn a simple skill that saves lives.
TourniquetsMaryland.org is an initiative started by the owner of EMS Aware to increase tourniquet and bleeding control awareness in Maryland. The goal is to bring easy-to-access Stop the Bleed education to all members of the public, and eventually move beyond Maryland in scope.
