Hands On September 2010

24-7 EMS Tourniquets & Hemorrhage Control Education Program

In the past few years, we’ve reviewed a number of hemorrhage control products. Whether it’s a tourniquet or a hemostatic-wound agent, the advances in bleeding control are phenomenal. But, has your training curriculum kept pace? The new Tourniquets & Hemorrhage Control Education Program from 24-7 EMS, a member of the Health & Safety Institute, offers recommendations on how hemorrhage control, hemostatic agents and tourniquets are changing in the prehospital field based on new levels of experience in military medicine. The program reviews the causes and types of blood loss, internal and external bleeding, the signs and symptoms of hemorrhage and the treatment protocols for these injuries.
VITALS
Price: $175
www.24-7ems.com
888/240-4911

Emantras Mobl21 App

Good EMS educators are always looking for ways to connect with the latest generation of EMT and paramedic students. And, with e-book readers, smartphones, iPads and similar technology, we’re perhaps on the verge of the paperless textbook and classroom. The new Mobl21 App from emantras offers another way to provide support materials to the tech-savvy student. Mobl21 allows educators and students to create learning materials for such mobile environments as a desktop, mobile device or social network. Mobl21 uses e-book features to support reference software and a comprehensive mobile learning system. Now, if your student has their phone with them—why wouldn’t they?—they also have their drug flash cards. And, the best feature is … it’s free.
VITALS
Platform: iPhone
Users: 10
Price: Free (upgrades available)
www.mobl21.com
610/449-5899

Ergodyne GloWear 8244PSV Expandable Public Safety Vest

Does your department have EMT or paramedic students spend shifts on your vehicles as part of their field clinical experience? Are you equipped with appropriate ANSI-approved, high-visibility vests that everyone on the rig can wear on traffic scenes? Although almost every department is compliant with this new requirement, it’s easy to see how students can be overlooked. The new GloWear 8244PSV Expandable Public Safety Vest from Ergodyne is an inexpensive option for departments and students. With adjustable sides and breathable, ANSI-certified polyester mesh fabric, the 8244PSV is both versatile and comfortable. It expands easily to accommodate turnout gear, bulky equipment and varying provider sizes. A five-point breakaway system adds some peace of mind in the unlikely event the vest becomes caught or snagged on a passing vehicle. It would also be a good idea for supervisors to carry a few of these compact vests in their rig in case they run across an incident where someone is lacking a vest.
VITALS
Sizes: M/L, XL, 2XL, 3XL+
Colors: Lime and orange
Certification: Level 2 ANSI
Price: $22.30
www.ergodyne.com
800/225-8238

Extron Voice Lift

How are the acoustics in your classrooms? Can all your students hear your instructors clearly in every area of the room? Does the audio on DVDs need to be blasted in order for those in the back to hear it above the din of the HVAC system? The new Voice Lift from Extron allows instructors and presenters to be heard without having to yell. A lightweight pendant microphone can be worn around the neck or clipped to the instructor’s clothing. The single pendant avoids the hassles and failure points of a separate microphone and transmitter. The system uses infrared transmission to limit interference and allows the presenter to stand directly underneath the speaker without feedback. The Voice Lift system also supports up to two microphones for each classroom, which can be used in dual-presenter applications as well as provide you with a spare pendant microphone. A volume adjustment with an audible tone permits the microphone to accommodate loud or soft-spoken presenters or overcome noisy environments.
VITALS
Operating Range: 40' line of sight
Run Time: 13 hours
Recharging Time: Up to five hours
Weight: 2.7 oz. (with battery)
Price: Call for pricing
www.extron.com
800/633-9876

Minox BL 8x33

From the time of your first hazmat awareness class, you were taught the importance of keeping a good pair of binoculars in every emergency vehicle. By viewing the scene from a safe distance, you can help mitigate the incident without becoming part of the problem. The new BL 8x33 binoculars from Minox have a number of features well suited for emergency response. Phase-corrected roof prisms, paired with multi-coated lens elements, ensure brilliant, sharp images with natural color rendition, even in low-light situations. The entire assembly is nitrogen-filled to provide corrosion resistance and prevent fogging under extreme temperature fluctuations as low as 14° F and as high as 122° F. And eyeglass wearers and those with 20:20 vision alike will benefit from extended eye relief and click-stop, twist-up, retractable rubber eyecups that will enable you to see the entire field of view. VITALS
Magnification: 8x
Field of View: 421 ft. at 1,000 yards 8°
Waterproof: Down to 16.40 ft.
Size: 5.11" x 5.43" x 1.77"
Weight: Approximately 22.93 oz.
Price: $469
www.minox.com
866/469-3080

Book Review: 102 Tips to Communicate More Effectively Using PowerPoint

Chances are, you’ve been to one of “those” presentations. The presenter reads the slides to you; the slides are more of a script than an outline, and the graphics consist of the stick figures found in the standard clip-art package. But today’s learners need more than yesterday’s boring PowerPoint slides. Dave Paradi’s new book, 102 Tips to Communicate More Effectively Using PowerPoint, takes you beyond the boring basics and provides a number of ways—102 to be exact—to improve your presentation. Whether it’s pushing “B” on the keyboard during a presentation to make the screen black or creating a graph to demonstrate complicated data, this book will improve the presentation you prepare for your classes.
VITALS
Pages: 72 Tips: 102
Price: $29.95 (print) or $24 PDF via e-mail
www.thinkoutsidetheslide.com
905/510-4911

Book Review: Cases in Pre-Hospital and Retrieval Medicine

Engaging students with discussions and case studies is a lot more interesting than merely lecturing to them. But, it takes a lot of restraint for EMS instructors to avoid the nonstop telling of “war stories.” Cases in Pre-Hospital and Retrieval Medicine is a supplementary case book with a self-directed approach that’s designed to complement core EMS textbooks. The book uses real prehospital and retrieval situations, which are presented in question format followed by an extensive discussion that highlights key areas of the specialty. The questions and answers are three to four pages in length, and most are accompanied by real event photos.
VITALS
Pages: 200
ISBN 13: 978-0-7295-3884-8
Price: $67.95
www.elsevier.com
800/545-2522