(Los Angeles CA) In cases of traumatic injury, seconds count. A person can bleed to death in less than five minutes, but with the right tools bystanders can step in and render aid to the injured until first responders are able to reach the scene.
That’s the philosophy behind “Stop The Bleed,” a national awareness campaign that Los Angeles World Airports (LAWA) has joined with the installation of bleeding suppression kits at 103 locations throughout the nine terminals at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX).
“A victim can bleed to death much faster than trained public safety personnel can arrive,” said Patrick Gannon, LAWA Deputy Executive Director for Security and Public Safety, during a news conference with the Los Angeles Fire Department (LAFD) earlier today. “The person standing or sitting next to that individual might be the only one who can make the difference between life and death.”
“This has been an ongoing collaboration between the Los Angeles Fire Department Tactical Emergency Medical Support, what we call our TEMS Unit, Community Risk Reduction Unit and Los Angeles World Airports,” said Los Angeles Fire Department Deputy Chief Armando Hogan. “The National Stop The Bleed campaign was implemented to fill a critical link in the chain of survival until first-responders arrive on the scene.”
The kits are stored in cabinets that also include an Automated External Defibrillator (AED) that can be used by the general public to help resuscitate someone suffering cardiac arrest. Just like the AEDs, the kits include instructions to help bystanders render aid.
“What we’ve learned over the years is our ability to protect the public in terms of public safety is truly dependent on the public’s involvement,” said LAFD Medical Director Dr. Marc Eckstein. “The tools in these kits are extremely easy to apply, and they are designed to be used by any lay-rescuer, any would-be Good Samaritan, to save the life of another, or even their own life.”
The kits include a clotting bandage that can be used to pack a wound and a tourniquet that can be used to stem the flow of blood from an injured person’s limbs. Also included in the kits are latex gloves, an emergency trauma dressing and shears.
Through its Emergency Management Division, LAWA has ordered 250 of the kits at a cost of $17,125 from North American Rescue. One to two kits are in each AED cabinet. They were distributed earlier this month, and signs are being updated to indicate the kits are inside the AED cabinets.
“The medical literature is extremely compelling that these kits truly work, they stem hemorrhage and they save lives” he said. “This is truly another step to provide for public safety at one of the world’s busiest airports.”
In addition, the LAFD is providing training to multiple agencies, including Los Angeles Airport Police, Airport Operations, Customs and Border Protection and the Transportation Security Administration in the use of these kits.
