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This publication contains copyrighted material.

FIELD MAN UAL *FM 21-11

HEADQUARTERSDEPARTMENT O F THE ARMY

Washington , DC, 27 October 1988

FIRST AID FOR SOLDIERS

5 TABLE OF CO NTENTS

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LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

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5 PREFACE

This manual meets the emergency medical training needs of individualsoldiers. Because medical personnel will not always be readily available,the nonm edical soldiers will have to rely heavily on their own skills andknow led ge of life-sustaining m ethod s to su rvive on the integratedbattlefield . This manu al also add resses first aid m easures for other life-threatening situations. It outlines both self-treatment (self-aid) and aid toother soldiers (buddy aid). More importantly, this manual emphasizespromp t and effective action in sustaining life and preventing or

minimizing further suffering. First aid is the emergency care given to thesick, injured, or wounded before being treated by medical personnel. TheArmy Dictionary defines first aid as urgent and immediate lifesavingand other measures which can be performed for casualties by nonmedicalpersonnel when medical personnel are not immediately available.Nonmedical soldiers have received basic first aid training and shouldremain skilled in the correct procedures for giving first aid. Mastery offirst aid p rocedu res is also part of a group stud y training p rogramentitled the Combat Lifesaver (DA Pam 351-20). A combat lifesaver is anonm edical sold ier w ho h as been trained to provide emergency care. Thisinclud es adm inistering intravenous infusions to casualties as his combat

mission permits. Normally, each squad, team, or crew will have onemember who is a combat lifesaver. This manual is directed to all soldiers.The procedu res discussed ap ply to all typ es of casualties and themeasu res described are for use by both male and female soldiers.

Cardiopulmonary resuscitative (CPR) procedures were deleted from thismanual. These procedures are not recognized as essential battlefieldskills that all sold iers shou ld be able to perform. Manag emen t andtreatment of casualties on the battlefield has demonstrated thatincidence of cardiac arrest are usually secondary to other injuriesrequiring imm ediate first aid. Other first aid p rocedu res, such a scontrolling hemorrhage are far more critical and must be performed wellto save lives. Learning and maintaining CPR skills is time and resourceintensive. CPR has very little practical application to battlefield first aidand is not listed as a common task for sold iers. The Academy of HealthSciences, US Army refers to th e Am erican H eart Association for theCPR standard. If a nonmedical soldier desires to learn CPR, he maycontact his supporting medical treatment facility for the appropriateinformation. All medical personnel, however, must maintain proficiencyin CPR and may be available to help soldiers m aster the skill. The USArmys official reference for CPR is FM 8-230.

This man ual has been d esigned to provid e a read y reference for theind ivid ual soldier on first aid. Only the information necessary to supportand sustain proficiency in first aid has been boxed and the task numberhas been listed. In addition, these first aid tasks for Skill Level 1 have

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been listed in Append ix G. The task number, title, and specific paragraphof the app ropriate information is provided in th e event a cross-referenceis desired.

Acknowledgment

Grateful acknowledgment is made to the American Heart Association fortheir perm ission to u se the copyrighted material.

Comm ercial ProductsComm ercial prod ucts (trade n ames or trad emarks) mentioned in thispublication are to provide descriptive information and for illustrativepurposes only. Their use does not imply endorsement by the Departmentof Defense.

Standardization Agreements

The p rovisions of this p u blication are th e su bject of intern ational

agreement(s):

NATO STANAG TITLE

2122 Medical Training in First Aid, BasicHygiene and Emergency Care

2126 First Aid Kits and Emergency Med icalCare Kits

2358 Medical First Aid and Hygiene Training inNBC Operations

2871 First Aid Material for Chemical Injuries

Neutral Language

Unless this publication states otherwise, masculine nouns and pronoun sdo not refer exclusively to men.

Appendixes

Appendix A is a listing of the contents of the First Aid Case and Kits.

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Appendix B discusses some casualty transportation procedures. Much isdependent up on the manner in which a casualty is rescued andtransported.

App endix C outlines some basic principles that p romote good health. Thehealth of the individu al sold ier is an imp ortant factor in conserving thefighting strength. History has often dem onstrated that the course of thebattle is influenced m ore by the health of the soldier than by strategy ortactics.

Appendix E discusses application of digital pressure and illustratespressure points.

App endix F d iscusses specific information on decontaminationprocedures.

Appendix G is a listing of Skill Level 1 common tasks.

Proponent Statement

The proponent of this publication is the Academy of Health Sciences, USArmy. Subm it changes for imp roving th is publication on DA Form 2028directly to Commandant, Academy of Health Sciences, US Army,ATTN: HSHA-CD, Fort Sam Houston, Texas 78234-6100.

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CHAPTER 1

FUNDAMENTAL CRITERIA FOR FIRST AID

INTRODUCTION

Soldiers may have to depend upon their first aid knowledge and skills tosave themselves or other soldiers. They may be able to save a life, preventpermanent disability, and reduce long periods of hospitalization byknowing whatto do, what notto do, and when to seek med ical assistance.Anything soldiers can d o to keep others in good fighting condition is partof the primary m ission to fight or to sup por t the weapons system. Mostinjured or ill soldiers are able to return to their units to fight and / orsupportprimarily because they are given appropriate and timely first aidfollowed by the best medical care possible. Therefore, all soldiers mustremem ber the basics:

Check for BREATHING: Lack of oxygen intake(throu gh a compromised airway or inadequate breathing) can lead to braindamage or death in very few m inutes.

Check for BLEEDING: Life cann ot continu e withou tan adequate volume of blood to carry oxygen to tissues.

Check for SHOCK: Unless shock is prevented ortreated, death may result even though the injury would not otherwise befatal.

Section I. EVALUATE CASUALTY

1-1. Casualty Evaluation (081-831-1000)

The time may come when you m ust instantly apply your know ledge of

lifesaving and first aid measures, possibly under combat or other adverseconditions. Any soldier observing an u nconscious and/ or ill, injured, orwounded person must carefully and skillfully evaluate him to determinethe first aid measures required to prevent further injury or d eath. Heshould seek help from medical personnel as soon as possible, but mustNOT interrupt his evaluation or treatment of the casualty. A secondperson may be sent to find medical help. One of the cardinal principles oftreating a casualty is tha t the initial rescuer must continu e theevaluation an d treatment, as the tactical situation p ermits, until he isrelieved by another ind ividual. If, dur ing any p art of the evalua tion, thecasualty exhibits the conditions for which the soldier is checking, thesoldier must stop the evaluation and immediately administer first aid. Ina chemical environment, the soldier should not evaluate the casualty

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