EMS 20/20 Control Bleeding and Emotions
Jan 7, 2026
David Horowitz, author and illustrator of the graphic memoir Medic - A Diary, shares vivid frontline stories from his EMS career. The conversation covers a chaotic stabbing call, decisions about staging and scene safety, prioritizing hemorrhage and airway control, de-escalation with family, coordinated resuscitation and blood use, and operational choices like transport and termination.
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Oozing Blood Can Hide Major Hemorrhage
- In neck trauma, slow oozing blood can still indicate massive hemorrhage because blood may pool before exiting the wound.
- Spencer warns that lack of spurting doesn't equal minor injury; deep neck cuts can trap blood internally.
Replace Towels With Trauma Dressings Fast
- Control external hemorrhage immediately with direct pressure and replace improvised towels with trauma dressings or hemostatic dressings when available.
- Stan had an officer fetch a trauma dressing to put over the towel on the neck wound.
Use Empathy To Get Families To Cooperate
- Use empathetic, collaborative language with distraught family to reduce obstruction and get needed items like DNR paperwork.
- Chris suggests saying you agree but need the paper DNR and offering to help find it to align goals.
