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Participants practicing emergency closure techniques -
Brent Baxter
Entering the summer months, CHRISTUS Southeast Texas – St. Elizabeth announced the successful completion of a Stop the Bleed training program, with 44 individuals now certified in life-saving techniques to control bleeding in emergencies. Stop the Bleed is a national initiative aimed at equipping individuals with the knowledge and skills needed to effectively control bleeding in the event of an emergency and empower individuals to take immediate action to stop severe bleeding to save lives.
“This is the first time we’ve opened the training to the general public and it’s something we plan to continue offering annually because of its importance,” said Kathy Rodgers, director of trauma at CHRISTUS Southeast Texas – St. Elizabeth. “This program is an important part of our commitment to community health and safety, and we are proud to have certified individuals in these life-saving techniques. Their newly acquired skills could be the difference between life and death in an emergency, and we commend their dedication and participation.”
In addition to the certificates of completion and recognition of commitment, the 44 participants are now also equipped with the know-how to act fast and accurate in times of need.
“It was one of these techniques we learned in this class that saved my son’s life during an accident at school last year,” said Kristie Baxter, mother of 14-year-old Brett Baxter, the local 2023 Children’s Miracle Network Champion. Among those credited for their quick action during Baxter’s emergency at a school in Vidor, a city that doesn’t even possess a hospital, was Mark Steele, a detective with the Orange County Sheriff ’s Office.
“Thanks to the actions of a school resource officer who properly applied a tourniquet to my son’s injured arm, he was able to be transported here to St. Elizabeth and receive life-saving surgery just in time. I can’t thank the health care professionals at CHRISTUS Southeast Texas – St. Elizabeth enough for their commitment to community health and safety.”
May’s National Stop the Bleed Month initiative reveals that, statistically, the number one cause of preventable death after an injury is bleeding. Stop the Bleed is an initiative launched by the White House in 2015 as a national public awareness campaign to encourage bystanders to get trained, equipped and empowered to help in a bleeding emergency before medical professionals arrive to take over.
“The only thing more tragic than a death is a death that could be prevented,” said Vice President of Trauma Services at CHRISTUS Spohn Health System in the South Texas and Coastal Bend Jennifer Carr.