CLEER EDC pocket medical kit/RATS tourniquet

[TGS]

The LEOs at the Salt Mines* have conducting classes on Active Shooters and Trauma First Aid, and apparently they have gone with the RATS. The rationale seems to have been that the ratcheting system is superior. (Second hand, I was not in the class, so take this FWIW.) I don't know if this was based on testing or simply the Good Idea Fairy.



*No, I will not be more specific.

The RATS does not have a ratcheting system....or are you saying there is a different TQ with a ratcheting system (like the RMT) that they feel is superior, but they've gone with the RATS regardless?

[scw2]

More second hand data, was listening to a podcast just now with Kerry Davis as a guest and he mentioned a drawback might be adequate surface area on lower extremities, with a positive being for use on kids and canines

[Drang]

The RATS does not have a ratcheting system....or are you saying there is a different TQ with a ratcheting system (like the RMT) that they feel is superior, but they've gone with the RATS regardless?

I'm saying that that is what I was told, and that the guy who told me didn't have any further data.

[SLG]

More second hand data, was listening to a podcast just now with Kerry Davis as a guest and he mentioned a drawback might be adequate surface area on lower extremities, with a positive being for use on kids and canines

That is the big issue my friend is concerned with. He says though the video shows otherwise, he fears that it will not work well on a leg, though it should be fine on an arm or a smaller person.

Also, he referenced a study out of Iraq that showed that the CAT had the highest success rate, followed by the SOFFT.

[ST911]

SOFTT-W, CAT, MAT, RATS, SWAT, TK-# are all capable of occlusion. Where they distinguish themselves from each other is in the amount and type of work that is required to produce it. Two handed applications in the classroom are easy. Start replicating limb, digit, tactile, range of motion, light, confinement or entrapment issues and they rapidly sort themselves out. It needn't be a complex testing process. Take every manufactured and expedient TQ you can find and run one- and two-handed drills with them, in various body positions.

As a primary/1st line TQ, the RATS/SWAT/TK are analogous to subcompact CCW pistols.

I like the elastics for kiddos, animals, pressure dressings, and deep spares. For primary TQs I buy SOFTT-W...by the pallet.

[SLG]

SOFTT-W, CAT, MAT, RATS, SWAT, TK-# are all capable of occlusion. Where they distinguish themselves from each other is in the amount and type of work that is required to produce it. Two handed applications in the classroom are easy. Start replicating limb, digit, tactile, range of motion, light, confinement or entrapment issues and they rapidly sort themselves out. It needn't be a complex testing process. Take every manufactured and expedient TQ you can find and run one- and two-handed drills with them, in various body positions.

As a primary/1st line TQ, the RATS/SWAT/TK are analogous to subcompact CCW pistols.

I like the elastics for kiddos, animals, pressure dressings, and deep spares. For primary TQs I buy SOFTT-W...by the pallet.

Interesting way to look at it.

[Cookie Monster]

I've gone to RATS due to lighter weight and ability to use on little limbs better.

I am sure I am losing some effectiveness but been trying to keep stuff on my person and lighten up my wildfire Gear.

[kobuksonhwacha]

I'm pretty much illiterate but this is a thing: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/m/pubmed/27045491/

[ScotchMan]

I was glad to stumble on this old thread as I just took my first trauma class this weekend. Our instructor who was a highly credentialed Paramedic with tactical experience (SWAT medic) encouraged the use and carry of CATs and SOFT-Ts, and had nothing good to say about RATs and SWAT-Ts. Everything he did was evidence-based, and this was confirmed by a few areas where he diverged from the info on the NAEMT-approved slides.

I have CATs on the way for me and mine, and will figure out a way to carry it.

[SLG]

I'm not telling anyone who is willing to carry a CATS or SOFF-T that they should switch, but knowing how to use an old school cravat is a critical skill in my mind. Not only does it allow for a smaller footprint for carry, it is also an extremely versatile EDC item. In addition, it works well on small limbs, and can be a great backup for those who carry a more substantial option.

It does take more training and practice, but not much more.