Will Dewispelaere, University of Colorado School of Medicine

April, 2019

*Med students at UCLA practice hands-on bleeding control skills*

This February medical students in Scrubs Addressing the Firearms Epidemic (SAFE) chapters across the country met with local Stop the Bleed educators to learn proper bleeding control techniques. These meetings took place as many students push for integration of bleeding control teaching into introductory medical school courses.

Gabriella Rader, a medical student and SAFE leader at Northwestern Feinberg School of Medicine commented on why this training might be important, saying “I think that it would be excellent if medical schools routinely included programs like Stop the Bleed in their curricula. Training future doctors to be able to act as effective active bystanders in trauma situations is in everyone's best interest.”

Stop the Bleed is a national awareness campaign born out of a collaboration between the US federal government, The American College of Surgeons, and the medical community. Established after the Sandy Hook shooting, its mission is to “encourage bystanders to become trained, equipped, and empowered to help in a bleeding emergency before professional help arrives.”

*Med students at Northwestern learning about the basics of tourniquet use*

Stop the Bleed classes consist of a lecture outlining basic bleeding control skills including identification of life-threatening hemorrhage, followed by hands-on practice with tourniquets and other equipment.

Since its inception, Stop the Bleed has trained people of all ages across the country, including medical students. However, SAFE’s event represents the first coordinated medical student initiative to learn these essential skills. “In teaching people how to stop bleeding during a trauma, this type of program can save lives” said Rader.

Interested in Stop the Bleed? Read more at their website — www.bleedingcontrol.org