Self Defense Medicine Session 7: Carrying and Deploying Tourniquets

Now let's talk about how we can carry this stuff and efficiently and effectively, and some of the pros and cons of different carry methods of a tourniquet. You'll notice the first thing I've got is a bag or a satchel or some type of a loose bag that's either stored in my vehicle or I carry with me if it's a some type of laptop bag that, hey, I do carry this with me all the time. And that's great. So the pros of it, one, you've got it with you. And that's usually, no matter how you're carrying a tourniquet, that's usually a big proponent is, hey, do you even have it with you, okay?

Because if it's back in the vehicle in the bag, well then you've gotta either fight your way back to the vehicle to get it or use a loved one or a bystander to help you retrieve that. Carrying it in the bag, depending on the bag, there may have some different pouches that you can utilize for the tourniquet. If it's got MOLLE or something, maybe you can put in there a pouch designed specifically for a tourniquet. But if you notice, I've gotta undo, the first thing, kind of a con is, well, it takes two hands to actually use this. One, if I've got this, I've gotta undo the snaps first and then still fish out the tourniquet.

Now, I will say this to help eliminate some of that. Be sure you keep your tourniquet where you can readily access it. Make sure it's not buried in the bottom of the bag or somewhere underneath your laptop or whatever or underneath your business cards or the lunch for that day. Make sure it's stationed and staged somewhere where you can actually get to it. I can get to it here, simply pull it out of that pouch and then I can apply either hand, all right?

Now, if it's in there and I've only got one, utilized one hand, well, sure, I can put it down on the ground and work with it undoing a buckle one at a time. And if, throwing the flap up, it's just gonna take a little bit longer to deploy with just one hand. So that is an option, it's not a bad option. That's carrying inside a bag. Another option is going to be carrying something that's more center lined, and there's two different options for that that you can use.

One might be, for example, using a belly band, which if you've taken a few of the classes, some folks are big fan of using the belly band for their defensive firearms and maybe utilizing if that belly band itself or one of those mag pouches, those slots in there for the tourniquet. If you notice, they're kinda almost the same dimensions, so you can carry that more center lined. Also, is the Lone Star Medics type two IFAK. As you can see, it's center lined, I can easily access either hand or one handed, and the tourniquet is the first thing I can deploy out of it. Now, of course, just like anything else, well, you've gotta be wearing this with you if you're planning on having that immediate access to it.

So if your IFAK, your type two IFAK is stored in the vehicle or in your range bag or wherever, but not on your person, well then you still have to make your way to it. So it's still a very good option and you've still got access to it. An IFAK, or individual first aid kit, is obviously something that's got more than just a tourniquet inside it. It'll have your pressure dressings, your chest seals, and some other goodies that we'll talk about later when we're talking about individual first aid kit or an IFAK. Another option that we can do is if you're wearing cargo pockets or cargo pants, all right?

Is you can store a tourniquet inside those cargo pockets perhaps. One that's a very good pro is that, one, you've got it on you. And that's one less thing you have to do is go retrieve the tourniquet or your med kit or your medical equipment and bring it to you. So that way, you've got it on you. That's always a good plus.

The con of it is, is that, well, depending on which, am I right-handed, left-handed, which leg, which pant leg do I put it in? Well, I'm thinking, my train of thought is if I'm right-handed, right-handed dominant, I'm gonna place the tourniquet in that left cargo pocket, in that left leg. The reason why is, well, if I'm right-handed, I've got stronger dexterity and mobility, I'm stronger with my right hand. So if my left hand is injured, well, then I can reach over and grab it using my right hand, using that strong hand. If it's over on my right leg and I'm right-handed dominant, my right hand gets injured.

I've got a weak hand here, a weaker hand trying to fish around and fumble around trying to retrieve that tourniquet and deploy it. However, like I said, the pro is that you've got them on you. Now, be sure that you can actually get to either one of those pockets. Another thing about storing your medical equipment inside a pocket or a pant leg or pockets, is you may have other equipment in there too, you may have your EDC knife or tools or your car keys or a cell phone in there that may get in the way of you deploying those. So I can still easily reach around though, grab that tourniquet and deploy it.

One more option, an option that I really like is the ankle med kit, okay? And this option, yes, the pro of it, again, I've got it on me. I don't have to go and retrieve it and retrieve it from a bag or a vehicle or someone else. I've got it on me, so that's always a plus, is keeping these medical equipment pieces with you and on you at all times. The ankle med kit, worn around the ankle, I simply hike up my pant leg, and I can do that either hand one or both hands, if one of my hands is injured and my arms.

And simply reach in and pull that tourniquet straight out of the pouch and deploy it and apply it as needed. Now, one thing that may be a con to having it on my leg is maybe I'm injured in the leg where I can't get my leg that distance up to me where I can reach it. It may be difficult. Everybody is a little bit different in shapes and sizes. Maybe I just can't reach it due to limited mobility, limited flexibility, but at least I've got the tourniquet on me, and that's a pretty good option right there.

So there's several different options of different ways you can carry this on your body or in a separate bag or in your IFAK or individual first aid kit. But the idea is at least you have one, you know where it is and how to access it. And you understand thoroughly the pros and cons of the different carry methods.