Talk:Field Manual: Medi-Kit

Actually, the medi-kit DOES seems to render combat medics totally obsolete. Jasonred 23:06, 6 March 2009 (CST)

This is all fluff-text created for our amusement. In the game, the Medi-kit does seem to make medics obsolete, but obviously the Medi-Kit cannot deal with forcible amputations, cardiac arrest, organ damage, etc., thus the text. It should also be noted that the Medi-Kit just seems to stop bleeding, and not actually heal the wound, which might be fatal in the case of grenade shrapnel, or crippling in the event of, say, an eye injury or blow to the head, since it may be hours before the combat is over and the Skyranger makes it back to the base infirmary.

Adding in some personal experience, I'm trained in the use of CPR and Automated External Defibrillators, and one thing they make sure to stress in the class is that CPR and AED use are only the second and third steps in survival chain for cardiac emergencies. The first is awareness/detection; the fourth is professional medical attention, such as paramedics or an ER doctor. The AED can get the heart working properly again, but they like to check you out after you have one used to figure out why you had an issue.

On the other hand, contrary to movie protrayals, CPR rarely will revive someone on its own. It is, instead, a stopgap measure intended to keep oxygen flowing through the body and to the brain, to stave off brain damage and buy enough time for someone to show up with an AED or the ambulance and paramedics to arrive. I feel the Medi-Kit serves the same place as an AED, and especially CPR; it is a stopgap measure that allows the soldier to live long enough to receive proper medical attention. Arrow Quivershaft 01:14, 7 March 2009 (CST)