In light of events tonight here is a PSA, when applying a tourniquet it goes above the injury. Number fucking one. If you put it below it does nothing.
One: ABOVE THE INJURY.
Secondly, if you’re going to place a tourniquet and have absolutely no idea what you’re doing, place it as close to the torso as you can. There are places on the arms and legs that will impede the function of a tourniquet if placed there. Like the elbow. Or the knee. Just a for instance. And places where there are only one bone make it easier to stop the bleeding, like the thigh or upper arm, because the bones can get in the way.
And yes, yes I know why you put it close, you don’t want the patient to lose part of their arm/leg etc, but here’s the thing, if it’s not at least 10 cm away from the injury it may not do much.
Therefore, in an emergency, put it as close as possible to the torso, then put pressure (an ungodly amount of pressure) on said injury. I don’t care if they’re screaming at you in pain.
That also goes for said tourniquet, leading to point number three.
Number three: if they’re not screaming at you that it’s too tight, it’s not tight enough. The purpose of a tourniquet is to stop an arterial bleed, therefore you must stop the pulse in that limb. Which means if they get to the hospital and I can still palpate a fucking pulse below the tourniquet, the tourniquet isn’t doing its job and the patient is still bleeding out.
Number 4: most people don’t need a tourniquet. If the injury is not spurring blood, aka actively coating walls or floor, or they don’t have a puddle around them the side of at least a spilled liter of soda/coke, pressure is probably better for the injury.
Number 5: if you put it on there, make sure you mark the time of placement. If it’s on for too long and it’s placed properly then the limb isn’t getting blood supply, which means it’s slowly dying, it’s a little important to know how long it’s been on there.
