My wife totally loved the class and learned a whole bunch of stuff she didn't know. For me, it was partly a refresher on a skill set I haven't practiced or thought about much in 30 years, and partly an education in what has changed since. CPR certification is part of the class, which is good because I let me certification lapse 25 years ago. In addition to the material taught, he brought in role-players and set up scenarios. We were not given a chance to study each scenario before being being confronted with it, so we had to think on our feet as we worked our way through each one.This is our most popular two-day course. This course is perfect for those with little to no previous first aid training. We will cover aggressive first aid for moderate to severe injuries/illnesses. Adult, child, infant CPR w/ AED (American Heart Assoc.) will be taught on the morning of the first day. Throughout class, each student will learn by minimal lectures, plenty of hands-on skills practice, and multiple scenarios involving role players. The students will participate in the skills training as individuals and as a team throughout both days. CareFlite will fly out a helicopter, real life missions and weather pending. Some of the subjects covered in this course:
- Medical & Legal Issues
- Body Substance Isolation; Use of Protective Barrier Devices
- Basic Anatomy & Physiology
- AHA CPR w/ AED
- Patient Assessment
- Penetrating & Blunt Trauma; GSW, Stabbings, Crush Injuries
- Medical Emergencies; Stroke, Diabetic Emergencies, Siezures
- Fractures & Sprains; Broken Bones
- Burns; Thermal, Electrical, etc.
- Environmental Emergencies
- Animal/Insect bites
- Heat & cold injuries
- Dehydration & Prevention (Caleb’s favorite)
- Shock; Management and Treatment
- Tourniquets & Hemostatic Bandages; QuickClot, Celox
- Movement of Patients (how, when & when not to)
- LZ operations; CareFlite provides a helicopter
- 911 Communications
- First Aid Kits & Equipment Selection
At Caleb's request, I won't give away his methods - it's nothing secret, but you're better off learning it from him than from me - but scene security was always the first consideration. One of the absolutely hugest takeaways for me was when I got "shanked" - twice - by a role-player as I walked from the door of the room to give aid to a "patient". I was aware of scene security as I entered the room, checking the near corners etc., as I came through the door. But once I had made a visual sweep of the room and then entered fully, patient's call for help had me so tunnel-vision focused on him that I did not even see the threat from another person standing nearby, and as I moved past him to the patient's side, he shanked me....twice. It was freaky, AND a little bit scary to see how I had gotten sucked in. Worse....my wife got shanked by the same guy because she just kind of blindly followed me, assuming that it was safe because I was moving forward. It scared the crap out of me after the fact. I went to sleep Saturday night replaying that over and over again in my head. In the next scenario today, I made it a point to carefully walk around the perimeter of the scene - far enough away to be safe - and approached it very, VERY cautiously, only when I was certain that there was no immediate threat. My wife and I both performed fairly well in that one. But scene security was burned into my brain. I'll never again approach the scene of an accident or other injury without first taking that into account.
There was plenty of time over the two days to learn and work with stuff like tourniquets, battle dressings, splints, etc., etc., before having to apply the knowledge to a scenario.
The price is $350/person for the two days. I can't recommend this class too highly. In addition to his civilian experience as a paramedic, Caleb was an Army medic attached to the 82nd Airborne, and was also with the Army's last MASH unit, and deployed to the Balkans where he got plenty of hands on experience. He also shoots competitively, is medic to a local municipal SWAT team, and is involved in other programs having to do with teaching tactical medicine, both to other professionals and to lay people. He is a very good teacher, hold's your interest, and manages to make it entertaining also.
http://lonestarmedics.com
