Every minute counts when a person is losing blood, and simple access to a tourniquet in a mass shooting or explosion could reduce loss of life dramatically. This is why the Georgia Society of the American College of Surgeons will have trauma surgeons and advocates from across the state meet at the Georgia State Capitol on Feb. 7, to encourage legislators to Stop the Bleed and allocate $1 million from the Super Speeder fund to place tourniquet kits in all Georgia schools and train teachers and staff on bleeding control.
“Stop the Bleed is an initiative that aims to make bleeding control knowledge as widespread as the Heimlich maneuver,” said Dr. Dennis Ashley, chairman of the Georgia Trauma Commission and President-elect of GSACS. “We need to make bleeding control use and education a state-wide priority, and to do that we need the support of our Georgia legislators. We believe the requested funding will greatly reduce tragic outcomes in the instance of a mass casualty situation.”
The event begins at the Georgia State Capitol at 10:30 a.m., followed by a news conference across Capitol Avenue SW in Liberty Plaza at 12 p.m. Along with discussing state trauma needs and encouraging the allocation of money from the Super Speeder fund, advocates will meet with capitol staff and legislators to train them on bystander bleeding control. The GSACS will have trauma surgeons and a survivor available for interviews prior to and following the press conference.
The Georgia Society of the American College of Surgeons is a professional organization that promotes the elevation of the standards of surgical care and practice for the benefit of all patients and practicing surgeons in the state of Georgia. Their Stop the Bleed campaign focuses on bleeding emergency education and promoting tourniquet availability. Visit GeorgiaACS.org or follow on Facebook or Twitter.
Visit BleedingControl.org for resources on how to respond to a bleeding emergency, including videos and diagrams. Click here to register for Trauma Awareness Day at the Georgia State Capitol.
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