Keep it simple stupid!
The world is full of better options. Ask anyone who married their high school sweetheart. In the world of emergency medicine, however, the best option is always what’s available. That goes true for gunfights and self defense as well. These are not moments to “pick and chose”. These are moments to “oh shit! We gotta do something right now.”
Blood belongs inside the body, airways are supposed to be open and clear, 911 should always have an ambulance en route and your patient should be treated to prevent or counter shock. That’s how simple the big picture is. There’s a long rabbit hole you can travel down in emergency medical training and I would encourage anyone to explore and even get certified in it. However, if you are ever on a limited budget or in a moment to just “work with what ya got”, this article should be very helpful for you.
The fundamentals and basics are what I have always reverted to during my time in the Army as a medic. If you’re a firearms person or a Brazilian jiu-jitsu enthusiast, you’ve probably learned to appreciate the importance of basics and fundamentals and the value of drilling for repetition. In emergency medicine, however, there seems to be a general attitude that leans towards high tech gear, expensive equipment and the latest and greatest generation of the same product. Nobody is ever wrong for having better equipment, but, coming from the world I came from, the emphasis was on the medic, not the having the most expensive products. Also keep in mind; you’re never wrong for having the best stuff, only for not knowing how to use it. The biggest piece of garbage in any aid bag is the goon who’s wearing it if he/she doesn’t know how to use it effectively.
I was deploying in the 07-11 years and I’ve gotten some very advanced training, been issued very “sexy” equipment and had access to very experienced battlefield medics in my units. That’s really nothing special and there were hundreds just like me. With all the expensive gear, cool guy medical courses and training I still always reverted back to the most simple and basic methods. For me this was very effective and in numerous situations where I was able to save patients who were walking to deaths door. As a matter of fact, looking back now I know the more severe the wounds the more basic and simple I kept the treatment. If it was bleeding I stopped it, if we were in the open we moved to cover, if the airway was comprised I secured it, if I saw an entrance wound I looked for the exit and if the chest was punctured I sealed it. For me, this meant tourniquets, kerlix rolls, ace wrap and vented chest seals.
Now, this isn’t to say there were not moments when I pulled out the “Gucci” gear. One contact in particular was the most haunting day of my life and the only time I ever treated a fellow American wounded teammate who’s injuries were absolutely not compatible with life. Myself and another medic, Kyle, did perform an advanced procedure in that fight to no success for our fallen teammate. In that exact same fight, we also witnessed a “Gucci” piece of equipment utterly fail. It was the collapsible litter that folds out and locks by twisting the handles as you extend it. Every infantryman and medic knows which one I’m talking about and has used it a million times in training. I can personally attest, as well as the others who were there, that it did not function quickly and effectively in the muddy reeds that day. Not everything that's cool, sexy and “tactical” is actually worth having. Sometimes, it just looks that way.
Try to think about this another way. If you're someone who shoots or has experience in law enforcement or as a firearms instructor, you probably laugh at all the people who spend thousands of dollars on pistols and optics. When someone shows up to your course with the most expensive pistol in the room with all the bells and whistles, you probably know right away that person’s going to need the most “attention” out of anyone in your course. On the other hand, that person who shows up with a stock Glock and a good pair of night sights is probably the most efficient person.
Now let’s talk about all the purchasing of sexy gear for emergency medicine. I’m going to be very direct, when it comes to the most advanced and expensive trauma products, unless it’s issued to you as part of your job, you don’t need that. Effectiveness takes training. Training that’s effective takes repetition. You would literally be bleeding money from the cost it would take to train and get the repetitions and refreshers to be effective with some of these products. Not to mention that some of these products require very specific conditions to be met in order for them to work. I don’t recommend anyone “wipe, pat, swoosh, place product in wound, apply direct pressure while protecting your hands for five minutes, re check status and then apply direct pressure again for an additional 5-8 minutes” during a gunfight or active shooter situation. I also don’t recommend you place little squares of hemostatic gauze in your gunshot wound with your finger one at a time, at least, if you want to live.
These are the items I carry with me everywhere I go in my truck. You’ll notice they are very simple, very basic and very affordable.
So, why these items? Well, for one thing, I have the most real world experience with them that I do with other items. Imagine you’re a serious BJJ competitor. You’re at worlds and have been training a game plan with your team and coaches for months. You’re scrolling through your phone after weigh in’s and you see a Facebook reel of a new takedown and attack you’ve never tried before but it looks cool. The guy in the video is even a champ and sells stuff online. Are you going to throw out all your training go with this new move instead when you're just minutes away from hitting the mat? Shit, I would hope not.
That goes the same for me. An operator with a YouTube channel has no effect on my emergency care plan. I’ve done this before in very adverse conditions with techniques I KNOW are effective because they saved lives. The idea of me trashing all that experience because some guy makes videos and is trying to sell me his friends' products is 100% not going to happen.
I know I can effectively treat a life-threatening situation with just these items here. I also know I can easily practice with them and afford to do so. That’s probably the most important foundation of preparing your emergency trauma EDC kit. Knowing that you have effective and proven items and that you can actually afford and be able to train/practice with them. Aside from that, I also know I can easily train others to use them too. The items and techniques are so simple they can easily be replicated effectively by even the most novice individual.
Y’all, I was well trained on all the sexy stuff that people try to sell you with YouTube and podcasts. I’m here to tell you with good conscience and intensions that you don’t need to spend your money on that stuff.
Keep your gear simple and your training sexy.
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