L.C.E.S. For EMT ’s

Some of you who are familiar with wildland firefighting are already well versed in the safety acronym L.C.E.S. It was developed in 1981 and continues to be taught in wildland firefighting curriculum as a handy checklist of things we should have in place when operating in dangerous environments where conditions can change fast. L.C.E.S. came about when retired U.S. Forest Service Superintendent Paul Gleason looked at fatal fires over the previous 20 years and identified the four elements most likely to save your butt when stuff goes really wrong. The acronym he created is simple and it works. In wildland firefighting changes in weather and fuel sources can mean that the operating conditions can go from good to “everybody run” in the blink on an eye, so L.C.E.S. is practiced pretty religiously.  One area of EMS where I feel is has tremendous application is when we’re working in traffic on accident scenes. I’d like to see us EMS folks adopt the L.C.E.S. mindset any time we’re working in the street or on the roadside. If there’s any doubt in your mind regarding how dangerous working on the side of the road can be, you need to check out the PA officer struck by a vehicle while helping an injured man or the dash-cam video of the Ohio police officer struck by an out-of-control car. Working in traffic is, quite simply, one of the most dangerous things we do. Here’s the L.C.E.S. acronym and how you can use it to help protect yourself and your crew. L ...
Source: The EMT Spot - Category: Emergency Medicine Authors: Tags: EMT Source Type: blogs