CHAPTER 3 FIRST AID EQUIPMENT, SUPPLIES, RESCUE, AND TRANSPORTATION This chapter will discuss first aid equipment and supplies, and the rescue and transportation of the injured patient. As a Hospital Corpsman, you will be expected to recognize the uses and application procedures for dressings and bandages, and to be able to identify the protective equipment needed in specific emergencies, along with where and when to use it. In this chapter, you will learn the phases of a rescue operation and the stages of extrication. You will also learn the precautionary steps that must be taken in special rescue situations. You will learn to recognize the different patient-moving devices and lifting techniques. Additionally, this chapter will familiarize y o u w i t h t h e v a r i o u s f o r m s o f e m e rg e n c y transportation, and you will learn to identify essential basic life support supplies on Navy ambulances. Finally, this chapter will give you the preparatory, en route, and turnover procedures for patients being transported to medical treatment facilities. FIRST AID EQUIPMENT AND SUPPLIES LEARNING OBJECTIVE: Identify initial equipment and supply needs. In a first aid situation, the Corpsman must always be ready to improvise. In many field emergency situations, standard medical supplies and equipment may not be immediately available, or they may run out. When medical supplies and equipment are available, they will probably be found in an ambulance or in the field medical Unit One Bag. Navy ambulances are stocked in accordance with BUMEDINST 6700.42, Ambulance Support. Table 3-1 lists equipment currently required for EMT-Basic level ambulances. Table 3-2 lists the contents of an emergency bag that a Hospital Corpsman might find in an ambulance. When assigned to Marine Corps Units, Hospital Corpsmen carry their medical equipment and supplies in a special bag. It is referred to as a “Unit One Bag.” The Unit One Bag is made of nylon, weighs about 9 pounds, has an adjustable carrying strap, and contains four strong compartments. The contents of the Unit One Bag are listed below in table 3–3. Unique operational requirements or command decisions may modify the make-up of these lists. As a Corpsman, it is up to you to be familiar with the emergency medical equipment at the command, since a call may come at a moment’s notice and you may have to use these items to help save or sustain a life. DRESSINGS AND BANDAGES LEARNING OBJECTIVE: Recognize the uses and application procedures for dressings and bandages. There are many different types of dressings and bandages. You should be familiar with the various standard dressings and bandages, their respective functions, and their proper application in first-aid and emergency situations. DEFINITION OF A DRESSING A dressing is a sterile pad or compress (usually made of gauze or cotton wrapped in gauze) used to cover wounds to control bleeding and/or prevent further contamination. Dressings should be large enough to cover the entire area of the wound and to extend at least 1" in every direction beyond the edges. If the dressing is not large enough, the edges of the wound are almost certain to become contaminated. Figure 3–1 shows several commonly used styles of dressings. Any part of a dressing that is to come in direct contact with a wound should be absolutely sterile (that is, free from microorganisms). The dressings that you will find in first aid kits have been sterilized. However, if you touch them with your fingers, your clothes, or any other unsterile object, they are no longer sterile. If you drag a dressing across the victim’s skin or allow it 3-1