Medical | Page 2 of 3 | S.W.A.T. Magazine

Saving Innocent Lives: Civilian Response To Active Shooter Course

After applying self-aid, student engages target down a hallway with one hand. We all were shaken to our cores by the horrific murders of 20 schoolchildren and six adults at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut. When the shock had somewhat lessened, I began to think about… Read More

Make Ready: EAG Shoot House/Combat Lifesaver Course

Dr. John Spears, a former 18D, instructs student how to pack a bullet wound through use of a meat-packed trouser leg prop. Hands-on stations in Combat Lifesaver module gave students valuable experience. We may someday be called upon to use this training. In this day and age, those… Read More

The X Factor: Lone Star Medics Medicine X Course

Face it: if you own or carry a gun for self-protection, you may be shot by the very threat you are armed against. This doesn’t mean you will be killed or even incapacitated before you can effectively take your attacker out of the fight, but it does mean you… Read More

Disaster Medicine: Gunsite Emergency Medical Preparedness Course

I’ve been fortunate to have done a lot of shooting over the years. Moreover, I’ve done much of it under the tutelage of professionals, whether of the itinerant type such as LFI, OPS, or ASAA, as well as schools with permanent campuses such as Gunsite and Thunder Ranch. I’ve done… Read More

Offbeat: SWAT-T Tourniquet

According to a number of sources in the medical field, a significant injury to an artery located in an extremity is capable of causing unconsciousness and leading to eventual death in as little as ten minutes. Read More

On the Bleeding Edge: Tactical Combat Casualty Care for Civilian Medics

Tactical Combat Casualty Care (TCCC) is a concept developed for highly trained military medics in combat. These medics operate in a completely different arena than their civilian counterparts, working within an expanded scope of practice that is only allowed when operating in a specific environment, such as a combat zone. Read More

Against All Odds: Field Trauma Kit: Beyond Band-Aids

In the September 2008 issue of S.W.A.T., Jeff Randall answered the request of some readers by writing about remote first aid. Jeff did a good job of covering what you may face once you leave the safety of your home, though I should really say, once you leave the safety of your bed, since most accidents occur in the home. Read More

Takedown!: Hostage Rescue Operations in Multistory Buildings

For units ranging from national anti-terrorist units to local SWAT teams, the need to take down a multistory building may arise. Generally, the type of incident dealt with by a local SWAT team will be more contained and will not likely involve terrorists, but the basic techniques are similar. Read More

Vehicle Tactics: Vital Skills in a Perilous World

Two of the things that cannot be foreseen in preparing for a lethal attack are where it is going to happen and what the threat is going to look like. Once the threat is perceived, we decide on the course of action, hope it is the correct action, and then proceed through the threat, calling on our training to guide us. Read More

Against All Odds: Remote First Aid

Small bleeders are typically easy to control by direct pressure and by using dressings such as sterile gauze pads, Band-Aids, steri-strips, or by taping the wound closed with simple duct tape. Rarely should you attempt to sew a wound closed. Serious bleeding should be controlled by direct pressure and pressure dressings. Read More