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5.11

Stop heavy bleeding

Press hard, directly on the wound, and do not let up until the bleeding stops or help takes over.

Gloved hands pressing a pad of white gauze firmly onto a person's forearm
Photo: RDNE Stock project / Pexels
Area: SafetyFrom age 14Time to learn: 10 minutes to learn; a Stop the Bleed class (most take 90 minutes or less) to practicePractise in a class

You will control heavy bleeding with firm, direct pressure while you wait for emergency help.

SafetyProtect yourself from blood with gloves, or a plastic bag over your hands if that is all you have. Take an ACS Stop the Bleed course, which includes hands-on practice with direct pressure, wound packing, and tourniquets. In Canada, first aid courses from the Canadian Red Cross and St. John Ambulance also teach bleeding control.

Why it matters

Bleeding is the number one cause of preventable death after injury (American College of Surgeons). A person who is bleeding heavily can die from blood loss within five minutes (US Department of Homeland Security), which can be faster than an ambulance arrives. Direct pressure needs only your hands.

How to do it

  1. Make sure the scene is safe. Put on gloves if you have them.
  2. Call 911, or point at one person and tell them to call. Ask for a first aid kit or bleeding control kit.
  3. Find where the blood is coming from. Open or cut away clothing if you need to see the wound.
  4. Put a clean cloth or gauze on the wound. Use a hemostatic (clotting) dressing if one is in the kit.
  5. Press straight down on the wound with both hands, firmly and steadily. Keep your arms straight and lean your body weight into it. If you can, rest the injured part on a firm, flat surface.
  6. Keep pressing. Do not lift to check. If blood soaks through, you can put one more pad on top, but never remove the first one.
  7. Hold pressure until the bleeding stops, help takes over, or you can no longer continue safely.
  8. If the bleeding stops, wrap a roller bandage firmly over the dressing. Check the hand or foot beyond the wound for warmth, color, and feeling.
  9. Keep the person warm and stay with them. Watch for shock: pale or cold skin, dizziness, and a fast, weak heartbeat.
  10. For life-threatening bleeding from an arm or leg, a tourniquet saves lives when you are trained to use one. Learn it in a Stop the Bleed class.

Common mistakes

  • Pressing too lightly, or for only a minute.
  • Lifting the cloth to look at the wound.
  • Removing blood-soaked gauze, which can restart bleeding.
  • Pulling out an object stuck in the wound. Leave it in and press around it.
You can do this when …you can show, on a training model or a folded towel, how to press with straight arms and body weight, and say what to do when blood soaks through.
Reading is not training. Practise on a manikin or in a supervised class with the American Red Cross or the American Heart Association, or in Canada with the Heart and Stroke Foundation, St John Ambulance or the Canadian Red Cross.

Sources

  1. American Red Cross - Life-threatening external bleeding
  2. American College of Surgeons - Stop the Bleed
  3. US Department of Homeland Security - Stop the Bleed (archived)

Sources and numbers last checked . How we check

Topic: CPR, the AED and choking

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← 5.10 previous lesson: How is a fire extinguisher used? The PASS method · 5.12 → next lesson: The recovery position
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