MCHD Saves Patient’s Life with Unique Clotting Agent

CONROE, Texas -- Just two weeks after being trained to use a lifesaving tool, Montgomery County Hospital District Advanced Paramedic Terri Duke found herself putting what she learned into practice early this morning.

“We responded to a patient who had fallen into a glass door, and was bleeding profusely,” Duke said. “It appeared to be a lacerated right brachial artery (the major blood vessel of the upper arm), possibly severed. As I was applying pressure to attempt to stop the bleeding, I mentioned that I wished we had our Quik Clot already. A sheriff’s department deputy who was on scene said he had some in his patrol car, which he got for me, and my recent training kicked into gear.”

Duke applied the product as she was taught; the bleeding stopped within a couple of minutes, and a tourniquet was not needed. The patient was transported to Ben Taub and underwent emergency surgery.

“This was an amazing experience and would not have been possible without our recent training,” said Duke.

MCHD supervisors and advanced paramedics were instructed on the usage of Quik Clot in a recent extensive training session at Baylor College of Medicine’s experimental surgery lab. After learning about the lifesaving results of the product, MCHD’s Medical Director Dr. Mark Escott decided to implement its usage throughout the EMS service.

“Quik Clot was first used by the military in war zones as a lifesaving measure, and now a number of law enforcement agencies carry it as well,” said Escott, also Assistant Professor in Emergency Medicine with Baylor. “We think it’s a great product to add to our lifesaving toolbox, and it is perfect for EMS because it’s intended to temporarily stop heavy bleeding in order to avoid hemorrhaging, therefore extending the patient’s life until they reach a medical facility.”

The product is a type of gauze impregnated with a clay-like substance (kaolin), which activates factors in the blood, triggering the body’s natural coagulation cascade and resulting in rapid coagulation.

MCHD has received its first shipment of the product and the entire field staff has undergone the appropriate training and use of the Quik Clot product. The product is now in all the MCHD ambulances throughout the county. Both advanced paramedics and supervisors are available around the clock for calls throughout Montgomery County.

The Montgomery County Hospital District’s mission is to care for the indigent and provide EMS services while protecting the interest of taxpayers and insuring long-term stability through fund development. The District’s vision is to operate a cost-effective indigent care and taxpayer-supplemented EMS with total professionalism administered through an elected board of directors.