To guide, inspire and prepare Wyomingites and their fellow Americans to act against existential threats to their liberties and to Western Civilization from radical revolutionaries and Emperors who have no clothes.
Emerging Threats
Preparedness
Survival Basics – Part 8: First Aid
"Life is the art of drawing without an eraser" - John W. Gardner
Twisted ankle or knee
According to a study of search and rescue volunteers, soft tissue injuries are the most common thing that people need rescuing for. An injury to our upper extremity might be inconvenient but an injury to our lower body joints can have serious impact on our journey to safety. Toughing it out can lead to permanent injuries. If possible, stop and assess the situation.
During your assessment ascertain whether the injury is weight bearing or not. If it is, we can support the injury with athletic tape or an ace bandage.
If us or someone in our group has a history of a specific injury or is prone to lower joint injuries, we can purchase purpose made wraps specific to certain joints at our local pharmacy to include in our medical equipment.
Applying the acronym RICE should help us successfully complete our "march" to safety and reduce recovery time.
Rest – especially if painful
Ice – for twenty to thirty minutes when available
Compression – wrap securely being careful not to cut off circulation
Elevation – elevate your feet when resting
If the injury is non weight bearing, we should splint the joint. What was a weight bearing injury can become non weight bearing through continued use or swelling. To splint the joints in a comfortable position we should
- Keep the foot at 90 degrees to the lower leg for ankle injuries
- Keep a slight bend in the knee (approx. 5 degrees)
As we move, we must remember to periodically check the splint to make sure we haven't cut off the circulation and that its still secure enough to provide the required support.
Before we start heading for home (again), we should reassess our new current situation. How fast and how far we move will be determined by many "in the moment" factors (how severe is our injury, are we in danger where we are, are we alone or part of a group, what resources do we have available, what time of day is it, do we know where we are, do we know where we're going, what is terrain like along our proposed route, do we have the navigation tools or knowledge to safely navigate out, what's the weather doing etc.). Having drawn conclusions from our assessment we will be in better shape for the next leg of our journey.
Study together and build off each other's knowledge. Create some medical situations and implement aid with the resources you have around. Compare the improvised equipment to the purpose specific ones and determine for yourself what works best for you (hint – the purpose specific gear is always easier and less time consuming).
"The principles of living greatly include the capacity to face trouble with courage, disappointment with cheerfulness, and trial with humility" - Thomas S. Monson