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Scurry County EMS Director Jason Tyler discussed safety during Saturday’s Stop the Bleed class at the EMS education center. Stop The Bleed is a national campaign that trains civilians how to handle bleeding emergencies before first responders arrive on scene.
Educating the community was a priority for Scurry County EMS on Saturday as it held free Stop The Bleed classes at the EMS education center.
Stop The Bleed is a national campaign that trains civilians how to handle bleeding emergencies before first responders arrive on the scene.
“Sandy Hook is where this really took off,” Scurry County EMS Director Jason Tyler said. “Mass gatherings are a good opportunity for people to take people out. This campaign helps us save lives in mass shootings, work-related injuries, motor vehicle crashes and bombings.”
Stop The Bleed was launched in 2015 by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and gives specific ways civilians can “stop the bleed.”
“We like to use the ABC’s of bleeding,” Tyler said. “The ‘A’ stands for alert, which means to call 911. The ‘B’ stands for bleeding, which means to find the bleeding. To do that, we have to expose the injury. The ‘C’ stands for compress, which means we need to apply pressure to stop the bleeding. This can be done by covering the wound, using a tourniquet or packing the wound.”
One part of the Stop The Bleed initiative is to establish Stop the Bleed kits.
“The goal is to get as many Stop The Bleed kits out there as we can,” Tyler said. “Anywhere there is an AED (automated external defibrillator), we would like for there to be a Stop The Bleed kit.”
While civilians helping civilians is a positive movement, Tyler stresses the importance of safety.
“Always look out for your safety,” he said. “You can’t help somebody if you’re not safe. You want to be as safe as possible so you can help that person.”
Scurry County EMS offers trainings at no cost to groups and organizations. To schedule a class, call paramedic Russel Thomas at 573-1912.