September 11th 2014, Kyiv – Roughly 60 per cent of preventable deaths on the battlefield result from catastrophic blood loss, 30 per cent from tension pneumothorax and 10 percent from blocked airways. But with the right training and equipment, CLS + IFAK, many of these lives could be saved. This was stated during a briefing in Ukraine Crisis Media Centre by John Quinn, MPH, MD Medical Consultant of Ukrainian World Congress which conducts the research regarding soldiers mortality rate and how to reduce it in the field of battle.
Mr. Quinn specified the main things required today to save people’s lives and improve the conditions of work for the doctors on the battlefield:
– Combat Life Saver (CLS) training for all uniformed troops, a comprehensive combat paramedic program and standardized pre-hospital training for all doctors
– The war fighter, paramedic and military doctors lack a standardized medical approach to emergency medicine and evacuation
– Rotary wing medical evacuation aircraft and communication equipment
The snapshot assessment aims to describe medical evacuation and emergency medical care from point of injury within the ATO of a Ukrainian soldier to receipt at a tertiary care and receiving medical facility. This report is not exhaustive, only was undertaken over the course of 12 days and is only the start of what a comprehensive medical audit can cover with data collection and process observation that is facilitated and supported by the Ministry of Defense. The gaps observed and highlighted with key recommendations are summarized on the link http://patriotdefence.org/index/executive-summary.html
The Ukrainian World Congress humanitarian initiative “Patriot Defence”, established to train Ukrainian soldiers and to provide the components of an Improved First Aid Kit (IFAK) based on the US military standard, actively operates in Ukraine. The program is funded by donations from Ukrainian communities in Australia, Canada, USA, Austria, Czech Republic and many other countries all over the world. Patriot Defence provide items which a soldier can use to save his own life or his buddy’s life to each of the soldiers trained by instructors in Military Tactical Combat Casualty Care (one day courses) and Combat Lifesaver (two days). Find more details and ways to support the initiative on the web-site www.patriotdefence.org.
