Proven commercially available tourniquets are always our first choice. Though many say improvised tourniquets don’t work, 12 students in a recent class all successfully made them work, when using appropriate materials, verified by Doppler ultrasound. The key to a successful …
After a recent trip to Thailand teaching with the College of Remote and Offshore Medicine, many students wanted recommendations on travel medicine, medications, and vaccinations. While most travelers to the developing world and tropical destinations worry about exotic diseases like …
Although dedicated medical equipment is always preferred, if the only thing that is going to keep someone from dying is a creative solution, you better get creative. Using everyday items, including a Zebra F-701 pen, we complete an improvised surgical …
Kneeling on the casualty’s groin for distal hemorrhage control When I was in the Special Forces Medical Sergeants course a very long time ago, I was taught a stopgap measure…
STAT Medical devices is marketing a ‘new STAT tourniquet’ on social media, advertising it as a “mass casualty tourniquet.” After repeated questions from my law enforcement and fire colleagues about this device, I contacted STAT Medical on several occasions requesting …
Carrying people is hard work. Carrying them with a litter makes the task easier. Non-Rigid litters are lighter and easier to store than their rigid counterparts, but they are harder to use. The casualty will naturally bend in the middle …