Being injured in the middle of nowhere can be deadly if you don’t know what to do – Cowboy State Daily

Bar Nunn-Whether it’s an errant hunting arrow that comes home from a grizzly bear or a car accident on a mountain pass, the wide open spaces of Wyoming can be dangerous—if not downright deadly—for those who are unprepared.

Getting everyone as ready as they can be to face the unexpected of being in the backcountry of Wyoming is one of the missions of a group called the Wyoming Patriots, which hosts classes in backcountry medicine.

Preparation is the mission behind everything the Wyoming Patriots do.

“We aim to build a stronger, more prepared community that can help itself in disasters,” said Eric Paulson, the nonprofit’s president, during a recent class at Bar Nunn. “Given Wyoming’s current situation, the fact that we’re way out in the middle of nowhere, we’ve got all kinds of oil fishermen, ranchers; You know, they’re just skills you don’t want to learn when you need them. “

The group gathered at the community building in Bar Noon to learn from former Navy SEAL Keith Grimes, who called the drill “Wave Top,” or basic medical skills. It was based on the curriculum from the National Stop the Bleed Program, sponsored by the American College of Surgeons, to teach people emergency techniques and tactics to get bleeding under control.

Grimes said he decided to become a Marine after he was driving home one night and witnessed a man driving a road over the city while living in San Diego. Under the cliff were buildings and a parking lot.

When the car started, it turned upside down. The vehicle landed 60 feet below the road in a haystack.

“I have no idea what the hay is doing there, right next to a restaurant in the middle of a parking lot,” he said. “And I realized taking him to EMT, that I know how to fix and rebuild engines … (and) that I don’t know how to fix people.”

Four priorities

Grimes and fellow instructor Dave Guiddy, who has 20 years of experience as an EMT, took participants through the ABCS of the Stop Bleed program, which includes:

• 911 alert.

• Find the bleeding.

• Wound compression with pressure, packing or tourniquet application.

• Treatment of hypothermia.

As a retired Marine with combat experience with the Marines in Iraq as well as other assignments, Grimes brought intensity and enthusiasm to the session.

“Today, I’m trying to hit the waves of information that any individual could learn and apply in any setting to guide their risk in dealing with a situation to help people manage wounds,” he said. “Life is going to kill you… what you do and how you make your decisions will help temper you at what point in that timeline and how far you do it.”

Bleeding score

Participants learned that when they encounter either an accident or are dealing with a rear-end crisis, it’s important to get the professionals rolling by calling or having someone call 911. The next immediate step is to assess for bleeding.

Grimes asked the class how fast a person can “bleed out.”

“Thirty seconds,” came the reply.

Grimes confirmed that arterial bleeding requires immediate action and talked about assessments of accident victims and how important it is to determine if there is bleeding, what type it is, and to act quickly and appropriately to stop it.

Bright red blood is coming from an artery and needs immediate compression to stop it, potentially requiring a tourniquet. Darker blood comes from the veins and takes a back seat when turning to other bright red wounds.

When compressing wounds with gauze or other material, Grimes said it’s important to never take it off — just apply more when the bleeding continues.

Wound compression can be done using hands or even knees to free the responder’s hands to attend to other wounds. Compression should continue until help arrives.

Grimes showed a photo of a man suffering from traumatic injuries with severe lacerations to both legs in multiple places and potential broken bones.

There were two turnstiles on each leg. He said the tourniquets were the right action because the immediate issue was to stop the flow of bleeding and if responders had worried about spreading or dealing with the other wounds, the man could have jumped to his death.

People practice proper application of tourniquets on each other, learning that they need a belt or object at least a centimeter wide, which means shoes, handkerchiefs and rope will not be effective and can cause harm.

The tourniquet should be as tight as possible to stop bleeding. And once applied, the tourniquet should never be withdrawn.

What if someone is hurt?

As an EMT, Guidi said there were situations where he didn’t have time to put on gloves before trying to stop a victim’s bleeding.

Concern for bloodborne pathogens should not prevent immediate efforts to stop bleeding. He advised people not to have black gloves in their first aid kits because they won’t be able to see the blood on them while assessing victims.

Grimes spoke about and demonstrated Israeli combat compression bandages, 6 inches wide and designed to allow progressive pressure to stop bleeding wounds.

“They’re extremely popular in a variety of environments,” he said, adding that they’re good to have in an emergency kit.

Both instructors also cover stabbing wounds and what to do, such as someone falling and impaling themselves on a branch or someone being accidentally shot with an arrow.

The answer? Do not remove the arrow or branch. Trim away the excess if possible and immobilize the branch or arrow so it cannot cause further damage.

Other drills during the three-and-a-half-hour session included ways to deal with tension pneumothorax, a medical emergency in which air builds up in the space outside the lungs and can collapse the lung and heart.

There was also information about splitting broken bones and the need to treat patients suffering from blood loss for hyperthermia.

Training also covered chest dressings and the proper size of first aid kits.

Guid said his own kit was small and probably enough to help one victim. He encouraged people to be realistic, improvise and do what they can if they encounter a situation that involves multiple casualties.

One person in the class, Steve Rupp of Casper, said he’s had the EMT class for several years and it’s like brushing up on his skills.

“Life brings its challenges and injuries with it, and it’s good to be able to patch up at least some of them,” he said. “I also have children and a wife to take care of. If they do get hurt, it’s good to be able to do something and avoid a trip to the ER. “

The class is designed to be an introduction and an encouragement for people to add to the information through further study, Grimes said.

Paulson said that in the future, he hopes to stop bleeding education in schools. He said the Wyoming Patriots are planning a series of classes for next year. The next one in February will focus on winter preparations and the Tips and Skills Council at Casper Unitarian Church.

Dale Killingbeck can be reached [email protected].