Unit 2
Personal Protection
Chapter 2-1
Basic Survival Medicine
Part 1 of 2
1. Chapter Objective
Know basic survival medicine procedures, treatments, and
prevention measures
2. Samples of Behavior/Main Points
a. List some of the most frequent injuries.
b. Describe the procedures and expedients that survival
medicine encompasses.
c. State and describe what is essential to prevent infection
in a survival situation.
d. Describe what reduces the chances of infection from
small scratches and abrasions.
e. Describe ways a survivor can take a bath when water is
in short supply.
f. Describe how to care for the mouth and teeth.
g. Describe how to care for the feet.
h. Describe why rest is important to a survivor.
i. List the rules for avoiding illness.
2. Samples of Behavior/Main Points (cont)
j.
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l.
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p.
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v.
Describe what could cause breathing problems.
Define tourniquet.
Describe how to control external bleeding.
Define gangrene.
Define shock
Describe how to treat shock
Describe some ways to control or limit pain.
List and describe two types of fractures.
Define dislocations.
Describe how to treat skin diseases and ailments.
List and describe bites and stings a survivor may encounter
List and describe vital injuries.
List and describe environmental injuries.
1. Medical Encounters in Survival
• You must be very prepared and attentive
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Most frequent injuries:
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Simple injuries can become severe and life-threatening within days
Infections can kill
Cuts, bruises, burns, strains, sprains, dislocations, fractures
Cold Survival => frostbite, hypothermia
Hot Survival => dehydration, heat cramps, heat
exhaustion, heatstroke
Survival medicine is more than first aid
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Cannot rely on medical personnel and equipment
Your medical care approaches final treatment
You and/or members of your party are the doctor and nurse
First Aid Kits
Field Dressings
Band Aids
Duct Tape
Moleskin
Gauze
Medical Tape
Antibiotic Ointment
Other meds
http://dsc.discovery.com/survival/survivaltools/first-aid-kit.html
2. Health Requirements
 Personal Hygiene
 Cleanliness is essential to prevent infection
 Protects against disease germs in your surroundings
 Protects the group by reducing the spread of germs
 The principal means of infecting food and open wounds is
contact with unclean hands
 Washing face, hands, and feet reduces chances of infection from
scratches and abrasions
 Soap is not essential to keeping clean (although is helpful)
 Ashes, sand, and fertile soil may be used to clean the body and
cooking utensils
 If water is in short supply, take an “air bath” or sun bath
 Keep hair/beard trimmed
 Hair provides a surface for the attachment of parasites and the growth
of bacteria
2. Health Requirements
 Care of the Mouth and Teeth
 Use a toothbrush at least once each day
 When a toothbrush is not available, a “chewing stick” can be
made from a twig
 Stimulate gum tissues by rubbing them vigorously with a clean
finger each day
 Use as much care cleaning dentures and other dental
appliances, removable or fixed, as when cleaning natural teeth
 If you have cavities you can make temporary fillings by
placing candle wax, tobacco, aspirin, hot pepper, toothpaste or
powder, or portions of ginger root into the cavity
2. Health Requirements
 Care of the Feet
 Proper care of the feet is critical in a survival situation
 If you must travel but you cannot due to foot problems, you may die
 Feet should be washed, dried thoroughly, and massaged daily
 If water in short supply, feet should be “air cleaned”
 Toenails should be trimmed straight across to prevent ingrown
toenails
 Boots should be broken in before wearing them
 Socks should be large enough to allow the toes to move freely
but not so loose that they wrinkle
 When traveling, feet should be examined regularly for red
spots or blisters
2. Health Requirements
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Clothing and Bedding
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Clothing and bedding can have disease germs which may be
present on the skin, in the stool, in the urine, or in secretion of
the nose and throat
Outer clothing should be washed with soap and water when it
becomes soiled
Under clothing and socks should be changed daily
Sleeping bags should be turned inside out, fluffed, and aired
after each use
Bed linen should be changed at least once a week, and the
blankets, pillows, and mattresses should be aired and sunned
2. Health Requirements
 Rest
 Rest is necessary for the survivor
 Restores physical and mental energy
 Promotes healing during an illness or injury
 If possible, regular rest periods should be planned each day
 You must learn to become comfortable and to rest under less
than ideal conditions
 Remember the two critical threats to survival:
 Yielding to comfort
 Apathy
2. Health Requirements
 Rules for Avoiding Illness
 Always purify water obtained from any natural source
 Pee or poop away from the ground in your camp area
 Dig “cat-holes” to cover your waste
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Never put your fingers or infected objects into your mouth
Wash hands before handling any food or drinking water
All eating utensils should be disinfected after each use
To guard against biting insects:
 Keep body clean
 Wearing proper protective clothing, head nets, bed nets, etc
 Use insect repellents
 Wet clothing should be exchanged for dry clothing as soon as
possible to avoid unnecessary body heat loss
 Do not share personal items
 Remove and bury all food scraps, cans, and garbage
 Get adequate sleep (7-8 hours) each day
3. Medical Emergencies
 Breathing Problems – Main Causes
 Foreign matter in mouth or throat that blocks opening to trachea
 Face or neck injuries
 Inflammation and swelling of mouth and throat caused by
inhaling smoke, flames, and irritating vapors or by an allergic
reaction
 “Kink” in the throat (caused by the neck bent forward so that
the chin rests upon the chest) may block the passage of air
 Tongue blocks passage of air to the lungs upon unconsciousness
3. Medical Emergencies
 Severe Bleeding
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Extremely dangerous
Loss of 1 liter of blood => moderate shock
Loss of 2 liters of blood => severe shock => life threatening
Loss of 3 liters of blood => usually fatal
 Control Bleeding
 In survival situation, you must control serious bleeding immediately
 Replacement fluids normally not available
 Victim can die within a matter of minutes
 The tourniquet, when required and properly used, will save life
 But if used improperly, it may cause detah
 Quick Clot
3. Medical Emergencies
 External Bleeding
 Arterial => Arteries carry blood away from heart and through body
 A cut artery issues bright red blood from the wound in distinct spurts or
pulses that correspond to the heartbeat
 Arterial bleeding is the most serious type of bleeding
 If not controlled promptly, it can be fatal
 Venous => Venous blood returns to the heart through blood vessels
called veins
 Blood is dark red, maroon, or bluish
 Venous bleeding usually easier to control than arterial bleeding
 Capillary => Extremely small vessels that connect the arteries with the
veins
 Most commonly occurs in minor cuts and scrapes
3. Medical Emergencies
 Methods to Control External Bleeding
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Direct Pressure
Elevation
Pressure Points
Digital Legation
Tourniquet
• If blood loss is significant, treat for shock
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Keep patient warm
Elevate the feet 8 to 10 inches
Control the bleeding
Transport ASAP
3. Medical Emergencies
 Methods to Control External Bleeding
 Direct Pressure
 Most effective way for venous bleeding; 1st option for arterial bleeds
 Apply pressure directly over the wound using a dressing
 If dressing shows blood seepage; don’t remove the dressing—instead add
another layer of dressing/gauze over it and find a pressure point
 For arterial bleed, if direct pressure doesn’t work, then use tourniquet
 Elevation
 Raise injured limb (arm or leg) as high as possible above heart level
 Slows blood loss by aiding the return of blood to the heart and lowering the
blood pressure at the wound
 Pressure Points
 A location where the main artery to wound lies near surface of the skin
 Digital Ligation
 Applying pressure with a finger or two on bleeding end of the vein or artery
3. Medical Emergencies
 Methods to Control External Bleeding (continued)
 Tourniquet
 Use a tourniquet only when direct pressure and all other methods did not
control the bleeding
 If you leave a tourniquet in place too long (more than several hours), the
damage to the tissues can progress to gangrene and a loss of the limb
 Rules for placing the tourniquet:
 Make sure the tourniquet is at least 2 to 4 inches wide (do not use shoe strings,
wire, etc)
 Proximal to the wound (around the limb) and between the wound and the heart
 5 to 10 centimeters above the wound
 Tighten until bleeding stops
 If patient is unconscious, write the time the tourniquet was applied on the
patient’s forehead
 Make sure the tourniquet is visible to EMS responders
3. Medical Emergencies
 Shock
 An intense stress reaction and clinical condition characterized by
symptoms that arise when cardiac output is not enough to fill the
arteries with blood under enough pressure to provide an adequate
blood supply to the organs and tissues
 A circulatory reaction of the body (as a whole) to injury
 Initially favors body resistance to the injury by ensuring adequate blood supply
to vital structures
 But may progress to the point of circulatory failure and death
 Signs and symptoms of shock
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Rapid shallow breathing
Cold, clammy skin
Rapid, weak pulse
Dizziness, fainting
Weakness
Eyes appear to stare
Anxiety or agitation
Seizures
Confusion or unresponsiveness
Low or no urine output
Bluish lips and fingernails
Sweating
Chest pain
3. Medical Emergencies
 Shock (continued)
 Fluids
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Generally prohibited in the treatment of shock
Poorly absorbed when given by mouth
May interfere with follow-on anesthesia for surgery
Survivors cannot be denied water for long periods
 Their recovery depends upon adequate hydration
3. Medical Emergencies
 Shock - Preventing and Treating Shock
 The Basics:
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Keep patient warm
Elevate the feet 8 to 10 inches
Control the bleeding
Transport ASAP
3. Medical Emergencies
 Shock - Preventing and Treating Shock
• More General Treatment Info:
 If the victim is conscious, place on a level surface and elevate feet/legs
 If the victim is unconscious, place on his side or abdomen with head turned to one side
to prevent choking
 If wet, remove wet clothing and replace with dry clothing
 Maintain body heat by insulating the victim from the surroundings and, in some
instances, applying external heat
 Use warm liquids/foods or pre-warmed sleeping bag/blanket to provide external warmth
 Improvise a shelter
 If the victim is conscious, slowly administer small doses of a warm salt or sugar
solution, if available
 If victim is unconscious or has abdominal wounds, do not give fluids by mouth
 Have the victim rest for at least 24 hours
 If you are alone, lie in a hole in the ground, behind a tree, or any other place out of the
weather, with your head lower than your feet
 If you are with a buddy, check your patient constantly
4. Pain
• Control of pain
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Both difficult and essential
Pain adds to discomfort
It can contribute to shock
Makes survivor more vulnerable
Ideally, pain should be eliminated by the removal of the cause
• Position, Heat, and Cold
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Part of body that is hurting should be put at rest, or restricted
Applying warmth reduces pain, for example a toothache
In some conditions, applying cold has the same effect, for example a sprain
Warmth or cold is best applied by using water due to its high specific heat
Try both to determine which is most beneficial
• Pain Killers
• Pain killers, Aspirin, Ibuprofen, etc are primarily intended to combat the
discomforts of colds and upper respiratory diseases, and, at best, will just take
the edge off severe pain
• Some parts of vegetation can be used (e.g., willows; wintergreen, boiled bark
of magnolia tree)