This 8 hour course was developed in collaboration with the Denver Health Department of EMS Education and the Denver Police Department Metro/SWAT unit, and NAEMT’s PreHospital Trauma Life Support (PHTLS) Committee. Trauma Life Support (PHTLS) Committee. It teaches public safety first responders (police, law enforcement officers, firefighters, and other first responders) the basic medical care interventions that will help save an injured responder’s life until EMS practitioners can safely enter a tactical scene.
The course combines the principles of PHTLS and Tactical Combat Casualty Care (TCCC), with the training provided to military medics by all branches of our Armed Services. It is consistent with the Tactical Emergency Casualty Care (TECC) guidelines, and meets the recommendations of the Hartford Consensus Document on Improving Survival from Active Shooter Events.
Course participants will learn life-saving medical actions such as bleeding control with a tourniquet, bleeding control with gauze packs or topical hemostatic agents, and opening an airway to allow a casualty to breathe.
Upon completion of the course participants will:
- Understand the rationale for immediate steps for hemorrhage control (including external hemorrhage control, direct pressure and wound packing, early use of tourniquet for severe hemorrhage, internal hemorrhage control by rapid evacuation, and transportation to major hospital/trauma center.
- Demonstrate the appropriate application of a tourniquet to the arm and leg.
- Describe the progressive strategy for controlling hemorrhage.
- Describe appropriate airway control techniques and devices.
- Demonstrate the correct application of a topical hemostatic dressing (combat gauze).
- Recognize the tactically relevant indicators of shock.
