Page 1 of 3 123 LastLast
Results 1 to 10 of 22

Thread: AAR: Condition Red 1 Day Medical - Human Cadaver Lab (4/30/21) *GRAPHIC CONTENT*

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Feb 2008
    Posts
    1,717
    Feedback Score
    2 (100%)

    Lightbulb AAR: Condition Red 1 Day Medical - Human Cadaver Lab (4/30/21) *GRAPHIC CONTENT*

    AAR: Condition Red One Day Human Cadaver Lab
    Instructor: Chris van Houten
    https://www.conditionredinc.com
    April 30, 2021
    Boston, MA
    8:30 am – 5 pm (one day)

    Hey guys, I've slowed down a bit writing these because of the time it takes to crank one out. But on this occasion I felt compelled to jot my thoughts and impressions down given my inexperience regarding the subject matter. This class has made a profound impression on me and my training.

    You may have been encouraged by your training mentors to be as well-rounded as possible as responsibly armed citizens. Get in shape, learn pistol, carbine, precision rifle, shotgun, combatives, blade, and medical etc.

    Each one of these subjects is worth a deep dive, and I feel that of these, medical is probably the most difficult to do hands-on, unlike say, pistol, carbine, and combatives. That can make the learning more abstract if done in a classroom-only setting.

    Also – this isn't the kind of training that I consider fun. A few days on the range? Fun. Grappling with buddies on a mat? Fun.

    Medical? Blah. Honestly, I didn't want to take this class.

    But I strongly felt like I needed to attend. And with today's ammo prices, the round count was ... just right.

    I'm a clueless civilian so keep in mind that is the perspective I'm writing from. I have attended multi-day TCCC (Tactical Combat Casualty Care) classroom sessions with local trainers and instructors like Will Willis. Many of the live fire instructors I have hosted and trained with have given medical briefs.

    I also recently attended a one-day TECC (Tactical Emergency Casualty Care) class with Chris van Houten, which is how I learned about this cadaver lab.

    I haven't yet attended a live tissue lab – so I'm unable to draw a comparison for you.

    I'll try to hit on some of the highlights. For a one-day lab, we covered a lot of material.

    So the setting for training was a bit unusual – an anatomy lab in the bowels of a university medical school in a large northeastern city. It's my understanding that Chris and this institution have been collaborating to train US military personnel in TCCC for some time now. I believe this was the first open enrollment opportunity.



    The laboratory is connected to a “clean” classroom stocked with a mini-kitchen. Our lab tech Mike brought us bagels and coffee.



    There were nine students including 3 LEO's, several volunteer EMS personnel as well as front line medical personnel.
    Last edited by 30 cal slut; 06-01-21 at 12:21.
    Doing my part to keep malls safe

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Feb 2008
    Posts
    1,717
    Feedback Score
    2 (100%)
    Just a few feet away from the classroom was the donor.

    He was a military-aged male between 20 and 30. He had recently passed away following treatment for a life-threatening disease. He donated his mortal remains for medical study and in exchange his body would receive a free cremation.

    Shortly after the donor expired, his body was embalmed. Most body hair was shaved (people are basically unrecognizeable with shaved head and eyebrows). The body itself was intact with no visible trauma.

    Last edited by 30 cal slut; 06-01-21 at 12:21.
    Doing my part to keep malls safe

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Feb 2008
    Posts
    1,717
    Feedback Score
    2 (100%)
    The program for the day, on the whiteboard in the lab.

    Last edited by 30 cal slut; 06-01-21 at 12:21.
    Doing my part to keep malls safe

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Feb 2008
    Posts
    1,717
    Feedback Score
    2 (100%)

    Lightbulb

    Getting ready before taking the plunge

    Students donned personal protective gear – gowns, gloves, face shields, and booties.



    Some of the tools we would be using

    Some familiar....



    Some not so familiar, at least in the context we're used to...

    Last edited by 30 cal slut; 06-01-21 at 12:22.
    Doing my part to keep malls safe

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Feb 2008
    Posts
    1,717
    Feedback Score
    2 (100%)
    Half of the training day was dedicated to bleed control. You can bleed out in about three minutes. With the average EMS response time of nine minutes, that means you can bleed out 3x while waiting for help. Being able to stop the bleed is super important.

    How can you make a cadaver “bleed?”

    By circulating dyed fluid through the blood vessels with an embalming machine hooked up to the an artery in the neck.

    Last edited by 30 cal slut; 06-01-21 at 12:22.
    Doing my part to keep malls safe

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Feb 2008
    Posts
    1,717
    Feedback Score
    2 (100%)

    Lightbulb

    After the embalming pump was turned on, it was time to make the cadaver bleed.

    You can control bleed by using direct pressure, tourniquets, and wound-packing.

    The students made the incisions using a scalpel. We started on lower leg and moved our way up the limb and to the arms and neck.



    My friend Steve Estes of Bullybreed Training applying the CAT-T tourniquets.



    A teachable moment. This was a student's first TQ application. You can see it was twisted.

    Last edited by 30 cal slut; 06-01-21 at 12:22.
    Doing my part to keep malls safe

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Feb 2008
    Posts
    1,717
    Feedback Score
    2 (100%)
    When it comes to tourniquets, you can't have too many. This is an example of a wound (right femoral) that required TWO tourniquets to fix. Takeaway: Carry TWO tourniquets or have a plan to use something else (like direct pressure) to stop the bleed.



    You can bleed out and die in minutes. You body contains 5-6 liters of blood. When you lose 1.5-2 liters, you lose consciousness. After losing 2.5 liters, you are beyond help.

    How quickly can you lose blood? Check out this femoral gusher that was made with just a scalpel. Pretty sobering. Time is of the essence to get this leak plugged.





    Gif if the video embeds don't show:

    Last edited by 30 cal slut; 06-01-21 at 12:25.
    Doing my part to keep malls safe

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Feb 2008
    Posts
    1,717
    Feedback Score
    2 (100%)

    Lightbulb

    CATastrophic Failure

    A very significant learning point came when a student was attempting to tighten a tourniquet on an arm with a cut to the brachial artery. After a few turns of the windlass – the tourniquet broke – spectacularly. Chris deliberately snuck a counterfeit CAT tourniquet into the kit pile. The student applying the fake tourniquet was visibly stunned. Had that been a real patient, it could have been a bad day. I wish I caught it on video – it was gold.

    Counterfeit CATs are sold on ebay and Amazon – the first hint they may be chinese knockoffs is the low price. They fail not only because of subpar materials but also insufficient stitching.

    PLEASE CHECK YOUR GEAR.

    BUY YOUR GEAR FROM REPUTABLE SOURCES.

    One of the easiest ways to spot a counterfeit CAT tourniquet is to look at the plastic base plate. A genuine CAT of more recent vintage (Gen 7) will have raised lettering. For olders models, see below.

    Last edited by 30 cal slut; 06-01-21 at 12:27.

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Feb 2008
    Posts
    1,717
    Feedback Score
    2 (100%)
    Bleeds: Wound Packing

    Packing a wound on a foam dummy just ain't the same as sticking your finger in a wet, slimy and cold body. It is a weird sensation. Call me crazy.

    Wound packing is done primarily on the limbs. As the chest and abdominal cavities have empty space, there isn't much for gauze to press down on to stop bleeding.

    If rolled up, gauze is easiest to apply from the center of the roll.

    After packing the wound, apply pressure bandage. Interesting to note that even if they're called Israeli bandages here, medics in some foreign military organizations aren't allowed to call them that per Chris.
    Last edited by 30 cal slut; 06-01-21 at 12:27.
    Doing my part to keep malls safe

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Feb 2008
    Posts
    1,717
    Feedback Score
    2 (100%)

    Lightbulb

    Bleeds: Junctional Wound

    Techniques to stop bleeding include tourniquets, wound packing, and direct pressure.

    Tourniquets are intended primarily for limbs. There is no place to apply them for junctional (where the torso joins the limb) bleeds.

    For femoral junctional wounds, direct pressure is likely the only method that will stop bleeding. This can be done with a specialized tool (as Chris demonstrated in a previous TECC class - JET tourniquet, or an improvised one made from two CATS and water bottles).

    Chris showed us a very interesting hack to very quickly apply pressure to these deep bleeds using a surgical clamp and gauze. It reminded of the scene in Blackhawk Down when Cpl Jamie Smith was bleeding out and the medic couldn't clamp the artery.

    Here's a way you can use a surgical clamp to stop a bleed without clamping a blood vessel.



    It works.

    Surgical clamps are now part of my IFAK.
    Last edited by 30 cal slut; 06-01-21 at 12:28.
    Doing my part to keep malls safe

Page 1 of 3 123 LastLast

Bookmarks

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •