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Assessing Firefighters' Tourniquet Skill Attainment and Retention: A Controlled Simulation-Based Experiment
Erik Dragset1,2, Sigurd Blix1,3,4, Jørgen Melau5
1UiT - The Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø, Troms, Norway.
Disaster Medicine and Public Health Preparedness
|June 15, 2023
Summary
Firefighters demonstrated successful tourniquet application and retention after a 45-minute training course. This training, based on national recommendations, ensures effective prehospital use of tourniquets.
Area of Science:
- Emergency medicine
- Prehospital care
- Trauma management
Background:
- Tourniquet use is critical in managing severe extremity hemorrhage.
- Effective training is essential for prehospital providers like firefighters.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate firefighter proficiency in tourniquet application after a brief training.
- To assess skill retention of tourniquet use after a 3-month interval.
Main Methods:
- Prospective experimental study involving firefighters.
- Training included a 45-minute course based on Norwegian national recommendations.
- Skills assessed via pre-course (T1), immediate post-course (T2), and 3-month follow-up (T3) testing.
Main Results:
- Successful tourniquet application increased significantly from 50.5% at T1 to 91.4% at T2 and 87.1% at T3.
- Mean application time improved from 59.6s at T1 to 34.9s at T2 and 37.7s at T3.
- Skill retention after 3 months was satisfactory.
Conclusions:
- Firefighters can achieve successful tourniquet application after a short, standardized training.
- The 45-minute training course effectively imparts skills for prehospital tourniquet use.
- Satisfactory skill retention supports the long-term efficacy of this training approach.
