LDT- Emergency Casualty Care Course- July 6th- Michigan

Heres a few AAR's from past classes

INSTRUCTOR: Keith Denman

WHAT: Liberty Defense Training Emergency Casualty Care

WHEN: March 24, 2013

WHERE: Rockford Sportsmans Club, Rockford, MI

ABOUT ME:

Avid shooter, build cars and work with tools and machines daily. Been bruised and cut up a few times from ATV accidents etc. I owed it to myself and others to take some medical training. No previous medical/First Aid knowledge.

WHAT I EXPECTED:

Talking to Keith, I knew this was going to be more of a "fundamentals" class compared to Kerry Davis's Tactical Aid course -- which is exactly what I wanted to start with. I was hoping to learn enough to be useful should a shooting accident happen on the range, something happen at work, or if I found myself in the midst of a car accident, natural disaster, etc. I wanted to learn how to help. Also expected to learn about different medical gear, items to carry, and how to use them.

WHAT ACTUALLY HAPPENED:

Keith was well-organized and I believe he really knew what he was teaching. Each student got a 3-ring binder with the Power Point slides printed off to reference and record notes. I found myself going back and double-checking previous slides throughout the day-- definitely helpful.

Like Keith and the MDFI guys teach with shooting, there are multiple ways to do just about anything. Same with medical gear -- multiple techniques and pieces of kit that can, in the end, accomplish the same thing. Keith had many examples of gear that we passed around to look at and try throughout the day; helpful for me as I am a visual person.

Like stated in the post above, about 2/3 of the class was spent learning, and the last 1/3 was spent trying out gear on ourselves and others. Keith also brought a hog quarter and put a 12ga slug through it and a 75gr .223 round so we could practice packing an actual gunshot wound - less the gushing blood.

This class is endorsed by Kerry from Dark Angel medical and some time was spent going over Kerry's DARK kits. I must say, it's a great kit and I have one on order right now. Until now, since I had no medical knowledge, I rarely carried any emergency medical equipment. That will definitely change. Kerry's DARK kit is fast, efficient, and has about everything you'll need and nothing you don't.

BEST THING I HAVE LEARNED:

Know you're gear, and how to use it, FAST. When you only have 20 seconds to put a tourniquet on your leg with one hand, I quickly realized that this takes practice, and you need to know exactly what you're doing. I quickly found my preferred pieces of kit, and there were some that I really didn't like.

GEAR ISSUES:

Since I don't have any of my own gear yet, I was able to decide what I want before I shell out the cash (Thanks Keith!). Out of the 4 or 5 tourniquets we were able to try, I preferred the CAT over anything, big time. Once I get my kit set up, I will continue to practice and refine what I can.

INSTRUCTOR CRITIQUE:

Leaving this the same as the OP:

Keith put on a well-balanced introductory program. The material was well produced, logically thought out and makes good sense. I’ve enjoyed Keith as a instructor numerous times, he’s engaging and knowledgeable.

SUMMARY:

Great first medical class to take, or I'm sure it would be good as a refresher. As some in the class stated, the training they had 30 years ago wasn't quite the same as what was taught at ECC -- mostly because the medical field is continually evolving and knowledge is increasing.

I walked away from the class feeling confident that if needed, I would be able to treat many different injuries on different parts of the body. Of course, a real life situation will be much different than a classroom setting, but that's also part of the reason that we went over the mindset one must have to do this.

ECC was well worth the $150 class fee. We learned valuable, life-saving information. A price cant even be placed on what we learned, as human life cannot be bought. I am thankful to know what I do now, and will continue my medical training from here on out.

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Who: Keith Denman

What: LDT Emergency Casualty Care

When: March 9, 13
Where: Black Creek CC, Mount Pleasant, MI

MY BACKGROUND: I hava served six years in the armed forces in barracks and combat theaters. I have taken classes from NSW guys in theater and other private classes in GA/CA/MI. I am also a firearms/training instructor in mid-Michigan specializing in carbine tactics.

GEAR: My EDC – Glock 23, TLR-1, Spare mag, Crown Holster, KABAR TDI, Kershaw Speedsafe, Streamlight Pro-Tac II, 1 pair Nitrile Gloves, Chap-stick, ID badge holder, iPhone 5 in an OtterBox, Rick Garcia leather belt, Belleville Paladin Boots, Royal Robbins tactical pants, and BLACKHAWK! Tactical RSO red polo.

What I Expected: I have prior experience in this type of training, so needless to say I went into this expecting to see everything I had once learned before. I have taken “Ranger First Responder, Combat Life Saver, and Red Cross” training, so I also assumed this would be similar training. I considered this a sort of refresher course and I hosted this event so that others may use this in any real world scenario they may encounter. I have used this type of training myself in real world applications, both military and civilian, so I saw the need for others to be prepared for it as well.

What Actually Happened: Everything we went over I had already known. But like anything worth training on, must be trained on again. Like any firearm, musical instrument, martial art etc, emergency casualty care is a perishable skill. Knowing and doing are two different things. I handled myself remarkably well if I say so, though.

Best Thing I Learned and Reinforced: I reinforced all of my previous training through Keith’s class. He is a great instructor and actually knows what he is talking about. I see a lot of people on forums and whatnot speak of these tasks, but have never practiced them. This only reinforced what I knew and had already practiced. Packing wounds on the hog quarter gave everyone a taste of reality on how to deal with a real piece of body. The laceration and GSW wounds were real, and I believe this helped everyone else mentally prepare for the real thing.

Gear Issues: I learned about a new bandage that I had never seen before, the OLEAS. I, however, observed that although the OLEAS had its advantages over the Israeli bandage (eye cup and extra gauze built in), it had one HUGE disadvantage for me. I could apply the Israeli to myself on every extremity. This was not the case for the OLEAS. I also learned that the form of Quick Clot I used previously was updated to a non-burning type. I also learned that the HALO is much more efficient than the Ashman Chest Seals for tension pneumothorax. (I have not taken a class of this manner since 2007.) I was also pre-exposed to a tourniquet (SOF) that no one else liked, but I could apply faster than anyone else could with any other tourniquet (CAT, SWAT etc.) I guess to sum this up, I found some newer more improved gear for a few items, but one solid piece of old gear that I could apply better than newer stuff.

Critique For Instructors or Class Flow: None. I had thought we might go over nasopharyngeal airways and cas-evacs, but that is set up for a more advanced class taught through Kerry Davis and DAM.

Summary: This class is a must for any firearm instructor in our industry. If you are teaching anything to do with firearms, and you do not have this type of training, YOU ARE WRONG. Fix yourself. Even if you are not teaching firearms classes, this class is a great class to have. I have used this type of training in real life applications in the civilian world (motorcycle accident I witnessed) as well as military. If you are a police officer and only have CPR/AED/Bloodborne Pathogens training, YOU ARE WRONG. Do yourself a favor, learn how to save a life with something useful. Let’s face it, **** happens. Unfortunately we live in a world of violence and accidents, and chances are in your profession, you will deal with a medical emergency. If you have a toolbox, why would you only fill it with screwdrivers? One day, you will need that wrench you neglected to buy, and will regret not having it. Besides, if your training is 5 years old (like my last session) there is new stuff coming out to replace what was one the latest and greatest. Learn about that gear and how to use it properly, because someday you might have to use it. And if/when you are unprepared for that situation, you will kick yourself in the ass.