We start the week with a story that rarely gets mentioned in airsoft and separate from First Aid: Battlefield Medicine. Battlefield Medicine is perhaps the most inelegant part in military technology, but is nevertheless one of the most important areas as saving the lives of soldiers who can live to fight another day will determine how an army fights and takes care of those who serve.

It's also one the more stressful jobs, especially on the part of the army medic who takes risks to treat, recover and evacuate soldiers wounded in the field. They are constantly under fire as there is no time to waste in treating an injured soldier who may be exposed to enemy fire.  Many soldiers owe their lives to combat medics who ensure that they are alive to reach the nearest field hospital for surgeons to continue treatment and enhance chances of recovery.

(Combat medics training at the Department of Combat Medic Training at Fort Sam Houston, Texas. Photo from the U.S. Army)

Over the past decade, may soldiers in the field are under constant threat of Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs), which explosive booby traps are called nowadays. Injuries they cause are called high-on-the-thigh and groin-level injuries and can be easily prevented if combat medics are equipped with something to stop hemorrhaging within 90 seconds or the soldier bleeds out. With constant enemy fire, the combat medics will need something that they will easily deploy at the pelvic area and it can also be used by non-medic members of a squad, a design we usually tend to call as "idiot proof". If it is complicated enough for the non-medic to use, they may just cause further injuries to the wounded combatant if used by other members of the squad when the a medic is not around to tend to the wounded.

Dr. Sam Scheinberg, the CEO of SAM Medical and himself a military surgeon during the Vietnam War, commissioned Ziba, a design firm which is tapped by some of the best brands in the world, to help them design a product which Scheinberg calls as  “bomb-proof and brain dead”. It has to be easily carried and not complicated, the solution should be stop the bleeding in 25 seconds or better under life and death situations which in the field means under constant pressure from enemy fire.

The Ziba design team were able to design the SAM Junctional Tourniquet:

By specifying several already-approved component parts, the Ziba team was able to save money and time, and put familiar hardware in front of medics. The asymmetrical sling guides correct application, while reducing its packed size and lowering materials cost. Color coding speeds application further, even under the limitations of the military-approved palette. Graphical instructions for use are printed on the inside of the sling itself, ensuring usability in an emergency, even by those with no prior training. The patented main buckle provides two distinct, audible feedback clicks on application: one for “secure” and one for “appropriately tight,” taking the guesswork out of correct belt-tensioning. Inflatable bladders called Target Compression Devices allow hemorrhage-stopping pressure to be applied anywhere beneath the sling, and can be used in multiples if necessary. This flexibility means the device can also be used elsewhere on the body, including around the shoulder – another limb-torso junction that presented insurmountable problems for previous tourniquets.

The materials and design used in the SAM Junctional Torniquet are meant to exceed the specification of the US Armed Forces and when tested by the Army Institute of Surgical Research they confirmed its effectiveness and had already proven itself in the field when it was used to save soldier's life in Afghanistan in January 2014.

It is always the simple designs that matter a lot when time is of the essence and the SAM Junctional Tourniquet is a prime example of such design for saving lives. It may not exactly airsofters will put in their kit when playing airsoft, but knowledge of this device may come in handy for those who organise airsoft events. Furthermore, for those who are active in the service may find it reassuring if they see this device available in their units, since they know that they can be saved in the quickest time possible if they happen to encounter an unfortunate situation where they get hit by an IED.