Program could reduce loss of life nationally by 40 percent
Submitted by Pickens County Fire & Rescue
On Saturday, April 11, Pickens County Fire Rescue participated in the official groundbreaking for the pre-hospital blood administration program hosted by Gilmer County Fire & Rescue.
The program is made possible by the Georgia Trauma Foundation, which places life-saving blood products directly on select ambulances, enabling specifically trained paramedics to administer them to critically injured trauma patients in the field.
Pickens County Fire entered into a tri-county partnership with Gilmer County Fire & Rescue and Fannin County Emergency Services to launch the pre-hospital blood program, which is a first “regional initiative” in the state along with several other individual agencies already delivering the services across the state. The initiative represents a major advancement in emergency medical care for North Georgia.
It is estimated that approximately 60,000 people across the nation lose their lives annually because of blood loss resulting from trauma. By providing blood transfusions before patients reach the hospital, first responders can begin treating severe blood loss, the leading cause of preventable death in trauma well in advance of arriving at a hospital and may reduce loss of life nationally by 40 percent.
Gilmer Fire will be the region leader with the initiative, assisting and delivering the blood products and equipment to designated scenes or locations when it is needed and requested. Gilmer Fire hosted the “train the trainer” class that allowed local emergency personnel to deliver the training which has now been delivered to paramedics in all three counties.
“The program will allow our paramedics here in Pickens County the ability to deliver ‘hospital-level’ care in the field, which can significantly improve survival of trauma patients,” says Pickens County Fire Chief Tim Prather.
The expectation is for the program to progress to where each county will eventually manage and maintain its own program in the near future.
Huge thanks to the Georgia Trauma Foundation and the blood center of Life South for their support of the program. Also, thanks to Gilmer County Fire and EMS Chief Paul Beamon for taking the lead in getting the program started, along with our area coordinator Scott Stephens from the Regional Trauma Advisory Committee.
