Could a solo persons belt bleed-kit save lives?

[mountainguyed67]

I have some of these in my first aid kit, the tails are long to tie around the body. One was used on one of my trips, the ER doctor was impressed.

 

[isaaccarlson]

As an EMT, in the event of a catastrophic injury, would you recommend a climber attempt to treat himself in the tree or use that energy to get to the ground asap? The way I had my climbing rig set up, I made sure I could release my lanyard and rappel down one handed, so probably talking 10 seconds low end, 30 seconds max to the ground.

It depends on the wound. Sometimes you have seconds to slow/stop the bleeding. A neck wound can render you unconscious in seconds, so if it takes you 10 seconds to get down, it's already too late. A large artery can dump blood incredibly fast, reducing blood pressure to the point where you are disoriented or pass out. Think of how quickly a deer dies when hit with an arrow. Most of my deer are on the ground and dead in 3-4 seconds. Granted those are chest wounds, but the blood loss is still massive.

If you are in a tree and sever an artery, you need to make a very fast assessment of what is damaged and either stop the bleeding right then and there and get down asap, or just get down and deal with it on the ground. Your crew needs to have a very good understanding of stopping bleeding and treating shock, not a basic understanding or a one time video, but a real world "i actually know what i am doing" kind of knowledge. It saves lives. Make sure everyone knows where a hospital is and the quickest route. It is much faster to transport yourself or your buddy to the hospital than to wait for an ambulance.

I have driven myself in for treatment before, and it was not fun with a dislocated neck and shoulder. A worker dropped a large branch on me, breaking my hardhat. (I was given the all-clear to walk under the tree and he dropped the branch) The guys said "shake it off, it's ok", but I was not ok. I knew my neck was hurt and my right arm was out of place. They wanted me to call the boss, but I needed to get help and nobody would drive me, so I took the truck and drove myself to see my cousin, who had a clinic just a few blocks away. Getting immediate attention prevented more long term damage. He knew something was not right and asked what happened. I told him part of a tree fell on me, hitting my head and right shoulder. He checked me out right away and had everything back in place in a few minutes, before the swelling started.

What drove me nuts was the denial of the crew and the boss being upset with me for leaving the jobsite for immediate treatment. I quit working for him after that. He was too worried about money, speed, and public image. It was a very dangerous place to work with that attitude.

Working fast is not safe, no job is worth your life, and you can't always depend on others to take care of you. Make sure you know what you need to and be as safe as you can.

 

[TimberMcPherson]

I carry a celox pad in my helmet, I can pull it free and open it one handed in seconds.

Less useful is the 2g pouch of quickclot in my wallet, but its always on me

 

[TheLazyBFarm]

Statistically, more people will be killed by the tree (or falling from it) that by a chainsaw cut, so first aid / trauma considerations should go beyond bleeding. That said, a saw (axe, etc.) can create a fatal cut.

One of the groups that I have volunteered with requires each Sawyer to carry a 'Blood Stop Kit’ in a belt pouch. They include:
- a tourniquet;
- compression ('Israeli') bandage;
- EMT shears (to remove clothing);
- gauze pads;
- roll gauze;
- first aid / medical tape;
- elastic ('ACE') bandage (to hold things in place);
- mylar ('space') blanket for shock;
- nitrile gloves.


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Choose components that you are comfortable using, and understand how to use what you have - not the time to be reading small letter instructions. I suggest keeping bandaids, and other minor, but necessary first aid stuff in a separate kit, so that this is clearly for emergency use.

If you get the opportunity, attend a 'STOP THE BLEED' class, which goes beyond typical Red Cross type first aid training, or a 'wilderness first aid' class, which assumes that you are a long way away from 911 type help.
www.stopthebleed.org

Philbert

I'm registered for a STB class April 9. Good to hear it's GTG.

Where did you get the above kit?

Thanks,

 

[Philbert]

Where did you get the above kit?

Pieced mine together from stuff on Amazon, or at Walgreens. There are some commercially available ( sorry, don’t have any links) but then you get what you get, not what you want.

Philbert

 

[Philbert]

Similar thread:

https://www.arboristsite.com/threads/what-do-you-keep-in-your-first-aid-kit.343367/#post-7325115
Philbert