Well; for the record I'll continue to carry what I have been trained to use until the day I am questioned in court why. As a trained emergency services professional I do know the limitations of training on the job and the remit of these limitations on liability. Did you know a lot of lessons and equipment from Afghan has filtered into trauma care and pain relief in the UK?
I understand your recent points about what you believe I should do and definitely not do but I'm not sure if you see the implications especially within remote medical care and limited medical equipment on scene. I'm pretty sure if heaven forbid you were involved in a medical emergency, you would want everything done that could be done for you to continue breathing and living. The points you have made are somewhat valid but for me and my range of paid employments, it's not. Carrying kit doesn't mean you've got to use it; your example of a small injury in the field agreeably will not need celox, who would? But if it's catastrophic trauma that's slightly different. Yes, it's at risk of infection but that's not really the pressing concern, a concern that can be managed outside of the emergency. In the bushcraft reality, you would probably walk back to the car and go to A & E for treatment. In a remote location it's a touch different.
Let's just agree to disagree and hope we don't bump into each other where one of us needs medical treatment.
Sent from my hidey hole using Tapatalk... sssh!
Well thought out, measured and articulate post.
I have reread through my posts and they did come off more confrontational than i intended, sorry about that.
I do still stand by my opinion that pressure and elevation is a far far far better solution than either a tampon or celox.
To be honest i've yet to meet a combat medic that carries a tampon, discovery of a tampon in a combat medics kit would get them a right royal telling off.
So even in combat zones a tampon is useless compared to having the correct dressing.
As i said earlier a combat medic has different priorities in treating a casualty than a civilian medic, if paramedics started using combat medic treatments and procedures folks would be dropping like rocks.
In combat medics have to stabilise the casualty, often move them to a safe (or slightly safer) area, they will mostly be under fire so not only have to worry about the casualty but also being able to defend their position as well if need be.
In civilian life medics have the luxury of not being under fire, they will very rarely move a casualty unless stabilised and they don't have to defend their position, they have 1 job to do and that's to save and stabilise the casualty.
If you are in a group and someone has a cut that causes major bleeding then pressure and elevation are a far better solution than either a tampon or celox.
You don't have to worry about moving the casualty, you are not under fire and apart from sending someone off to call the emergency services your main job right then is to keep applying pressure.
The reason i called it a fantasy is that i don't see a realistic civilian scenario where either a tampon or celox would be a better solution that pressure, elevation and a proper wound dressing.
I've had and tended to pretty dramatic blood loss, a few of those time i was without proper dressing, i improvised with some clothing, not ideal but a LOT less messy that digging out disintegrating tampons from a wound and a LOT easier to clean up than celox type treatments once at hospital.
That's really the thing, a injury has to be thought of in it's entirety, pouring celox onto a wound may help stop the bleeding when the casualty is in your care, but what about 1 hour later at the hospital, a nurse or doctor has to clean that stuff from the wound, which is going to be painful and reopen the wound again.
Likewise with cleaning out disintegrated tampons.
In both cases a proper sterilised dressing would have saved that hassle and pain, even if you used a teeshirt it would do as good a job (if not better in the case of a tampon) PLUS it'd be a million times easier to clean the wound later in the treatment.
As i say, please don't take my word for it, i'm just some bloke in the internet.
If you are taking groups out then you owe it to the folks in your care to speak to health professionals about what they see is the best treatment.
It's only with speaking to the guys and gals that you hand the casualty off to that you'll really know the best procedure and treatments.
Personally i've been down the same road, i was derided and made fun of when i suggested tampon for a gun shot wound and celox for wound treatment.
After they'd all had a good laugh they put across the points i've made on why it's a bad idea.
We all need to go our own path though, i only ask that you revisit your choices and speak to the folks you're likely going to be handing off a casualty to.
