Point of Injury

One of the most important moments at the point of injury is the small window of time a medic must stabilize the wounded before being evacuated to the next care role. During the Vietnam War, an Air Force or Army medic or a Navy corpsman provided aid by stopping the bleeding, securing the airway, and dressing wounds all the while fighting continued around them. In such dire situations, their first aid was just as important as their ammunition, as medics and corpsmen played both offensive and defensive roles in the jungles of Vietnam. During the Vietnam War, over 1,100 medics and 680 corpsmen were killed in action.

Decades later, the U.S. military produced a training program called the Tactical Combat Casualty Care (TCCC) program, which aimed to educate all service members on how to provide basic emergency aid. While combat medics and corpsmen are still some of the most vulnerable people on the field, thanks to the TCCC program, along with improved equipment, body armor, and easy-to-use first aid materials such as the tourniquet, all service members today are equipped with the resources to quickly provide first aid and stability for an injured person prior to their evacuation.